Spies and Assasins
by Vixixi
Summary: First the Thundercats suddenly aquire a quartet of spies, then they enter dream worlds, and then find forged documents. And to top it off, LionO finds himself being dragged on a swordsearch by a mutant female!
1. Prologue: Field of Fertility

I used to think that this prologue… well, could've been done MUCH better. Especially on my part. As my recent mentor has told me in no uncertain terms that I am no longer allowed to degrade myself, I must now say with a straight face that this prologue isn't _too_ bad. After all, if I wrote this YEARS ago and still think it's readable and only needed a tweak here and there; that's got to count for something, right? Whether or not anyone else does thinks as much is beyond my control, and therefore none of my concern. Anyway….

This little prologue starts off before the series ends. However, it takes place exclusively on Third Earth, rather than New Thundera. I suppose one could call this my own personal guess as to why Pumyra and Tygra didn't return to New Thundera with the others right away.

Enjoy!

5/6/2006?

* * *

**Prologue: Field of Fertility**

Pumyra sat in the command chair in Cats' Lair, none too happy. Only after everything exciting was over and everyone had gone home to New Thundera was she finally put in charge of something. Not that she'd want to be on New Thundera right this moment, but that was beside the point. _Maybe it's because I wear a skirt,_ she thought. _Maybe they think it's too girly._ She sighed unhappily, leaning back in her chair with a scowl. _And now there's no one to have sex with… except the homosexual Tygra._

_At least… I _think_ he's gay. He certainly hadn't taken part in any sexual activity that _I_ know of._ To her knowledge, he'd never laid a finger on Cheetara, but neither had he tried to hit on Lion-O, Panthro, or Bengali. Not even Lynx-O.

Tygra had been upset when he found out that he and Pumyra were going to be forced to stay on Third Earth to make sure everything stayed perfectly fine. Pumyra, for her part, didn't really care. New Thundera was her home reformed, it's true, but she had her reasons for wanting to stay away. The biggest reason was that, when she was barely nine, she'd been betrothed to a fat, disgusting man that was a good thirty years her senior.

It wasn't his age that bothered her, or even the fact that he was fat. Lynx-O was nearly forty years older than her (and, boy did he know how to have sex!); when she'd been imprisoned by the Luna-taks with Lynx-O and Bengali a while back, Tug Mug had "taken advantage" of her plenty of times (and he wasn't too bad, either; needed a bath, though). No, it wasn't even the fact that her betrothed had insisted that his little bride be a virgin when they wedded on her nineteenth birthday (thank you, Jaga, that Thundera had blown to pieces a week before then; it would've been very embarrassing for her new "husband" to discover no hymen where there should've been one… assuming that the man had found her).

There was just something about him she couldn't put her finger on, as if, despite all his riches and power, he needed to have more. She had seen how he treated his "indentured servants," and been appalled to discover that they were little more than slaves forced to do his will. Maybe that was it, but she couldn't be sure.

_Why would he have insisted that I be a virgin, though?_ she wondered. _Perhaps he has a tiny penis, knows it, and doesn't want to be teased about it from his bride? Maybe it's a male dominance thing?_

And as long as she was NOT on New Thundera, she could be certain she wouldn't run into him by accident.

One of the controls beeped, signaling the arrival of someone reasonably friendly. She reached out and turned on the screen, lifting an eyebrow when she saw Tygra approaching. He looked a little nervous, as if he was certain she'd kick him between the legs on the slightest provocation.

_Have I ever remembered him acting quite like that? _She thought back carefully over all the times she'd been anywhere near him. _No, he's never really acted like that before, but then, he's never really been alone with me on a non-business occasion. There's always been someone else in the room, or we've been together trying to beat the shit out of one person or another. Even then, he's never really talked to me unless he had to._

She danced down the steps, skipping every other one, and walked calmly to the front door. _Maybe I can seduce him. Jaga knows I'm getting sick of bananas._

_Ha, ha. Like the homo would let me._

She opened the door and smiled charmingly at him_. If nothing else, I'll have fun doing something other than watching porn films and digging through the vegetable drawer for another carrot or cucumber._ "Tygra, what brings you here? You're not in a rush, so can I assume it's just a social visit?"

He deliberately looked down at his feet. "Um… I know we really don't know each other that much… um… but I figured that since we're… we're… going to be spending some time together… uh… we might as well… you know…." Right about here he panicked, as if realizing he'd said something naughty. He looked up at her, turning red, eyes wide and a little frightened. "I mean… that's _not_ what I mean…!"

She let him babble on for a moment, only somewhat aware that her face had taken on a rather blank look. _What's he up to? Is he so horny he'll take anything? Wonder what he's been screwing with before this. Snarf? A tree? This is not the attitude of someone who has sex with sentient beings on a regular basis._

"It's just… we're here… they're not…."

"Tygra, your stuttering is literally painful," she told him. "Calm down, gather your thoughts together, and whatever it is, just say it slowly."

His mouth snapped shut, his face darkened another few shades, and he looked down at his feet again. Humiliation radiated from him.

She took pity on him. "What you wanted to say is that you're lonely and want some company, right?"

He nodded, but he didn't look up.

She waited a few moments to see if he'd do anything else. When he didn't, she sighed and said, "Well, are you going to stand there all day or are you going to come in?"

He looked up at her again, a little surprised. "Can I?"

She debated saying something acidic, and decided against it. She might scare him off. "Yes, Tygra. How about we go to the kitchen and have a cup of tea?"

"Um… sure, I guess… I…." At this point, he was practically the same color as the Cat Signal. Pumyra half expected him to faint, but he didn't. Instead, he wordlessly held out a flower to her.

She was rather touched despite herself. It wasn't much of a flower, just a little white thing on a stem that had been gripped too hard by a nervous hand, probably something he had picked randomly on the walk over here. Still, it smelled very sweet, and she couldn't help falling in love with it. She took it from him and held the little blossom to her nose so that she could revel in its scent. "Thank you, Tygra. It's lovely."

He looked like he was about to start stuttering again, so before he could say anything, she took his hand and led him to the kitchen. _Well, so does the amateur want to seduce the master?_ she thought. _Because if he does, then he's in for a surprise._

* * *

Tygra obediently allowed himself to be led to the kitchen, his thoughts in a tumble. Everything had seemed to make sense before, when he'd been in the Tower of Omens, memorizing the speech he'd written out over the course of a week. Now that he was actually here, however, with Pumyra just within reach, he'd forgotten every word and only wanted to hide and pretend he didn't exist.

_What am I afraid of?_ he thought. _It's not like she's going to eat me alive and gnaw on my bones afterwards. Why can't I just tell her that I want to court her?_

_Because she'll think I'm a creep for only noticing her after everyone else is gone. Because she's a pretty woman who could have her pick of young stallions and certainly wouldn't want an old man like me. Because she'd freak out the moment she found out my first—and let's not fool ourselves, Tygra,_ only—_lover was Panthro. Because she's probably emotionally attached to Bengali and wouldn't care anything about his older brother._

With each depressing thought, he felt more and more like snatching his hand away from hers, turning around, and running off as fast as he could. _What am I doing here? I'm only going to make a fool of myself._

Just when he really was thinking of running away, they entered the kitchen, and he found himself sitting in a chair before he'd even realized what happened. As Pumyra flitted around the kitchen putting together a snack and a pot of tea, he made his plan of action. _I'll just wait until her back is turned, then make a break for it…._

Her back was turned to him as she was putting the tea kettle on the stove, but before he could even rise up half an inch, she said, quite calmly, "If you run, I'll catch you."

He froze, and started feeling like a fool all over again.

She turned around just in time to catch his guilty look. "I thought so. I'm not a cannibal, Tygra, and I'd rather like some company myself." He noticed with some bemusement that she still had the flower he'd given her; she'd tucked it behind her ear at some point. It made her look so innocent.

And it made him feel like a pervert. "I'm sorry, Pumyra… I'm just not used to being"—he almost said, "being in the company of a beautiful woman, such as yourself," but stopped himself in time—"being alone with someone I barely know." While it wasn't technically possible to kick himself later on for his idiocy, he could bang his head against a wall when he got back to the Tower.

"I see."

The next five minutes were full of total silence, broken occasionally by Pumyra humming random songs under her breath. Tygra convinced himself that it was only his imagination that she was humming such tunes like "Candy Shop", "Sexual Healing", "Freak-A-Leak", and "Sex on the Beach". Surely a lady such as Pumyra couldn't know raunchy songs like that, right?

Finally, she placed a cup of tea in front of him, then sat down across from him with a cup of her own. She seemed to be waiting for something, lifting the teacup to her lips and taking a delicate sip, occasionally sending him a querying look.

_I'm going to tell her,_ he firmly told himself taking a mouthful of tea and hoping he didn't look uncouth while doing so. _I'm going to tell her _now,_ before I lose my courage…._

Pumyra put down her teacup. "So. Want to have sex?"

He unintentionally spat the tea out all over the table, coughing a bit as some managed to get down his wind pipe. Thankfully, Pumyra waited patiently for him to stop, only pulling out a towel from somewhere to mop up the tea. He cleared his throat a couple times to make sure he was alright, then looked back at her. "I'm sorry, I thought you said—"

"I did. I want to know if you want to have sex."

The illusion of an innocent maiden who had never done anything more shocking than a gentle kiss to someone's lips that Tygra had been cherishing for quite some time now was shattered. Only then did it occur to him that he really and truly _did not know_ who this woman was. Ridiculously, knowing she wasn't an innocent maiden untouched by man made him _far_ less nervous. "Yes—I mean, no! I just… I just wanted to get to know you better… and maybe…." He was getting nervous again, and looked down at the table so he wouldn't have to look at her. "Maybe I could… court you?"

When there was no immediate reply, he glanced up at her. She was once again delicately sipping her tea, and some hope was regained when he saw that she looked flattered. "Courting," she said in a rather girlish way. "I've never done that before. It sounds like fun!"

He found himself wondering just what it was she _had_ done before.

She put down her teacup, and he was heartened to see that she was delighted. "Courting! Okay, I accept!"

"You… you do?" He was pleased, but be couldn't help but feel a little stunned at the same time.

"Why not? Who's going to stop us? The Mutants and Luna-taks are gone, Mumm-Ra's rampaging around on New Thundera according to Lion-O, there's hardly been anything around here for us to do, we're both lonely, and probably bored as well." Her expression suddenly became rather sneaky. "Besides, it'll be fun to see who seduces whom first."

He stared at her for a moment, not quite sure he'd really heart that. "'Seduction' is not part of 'courting', Pumyra…."

"It isn't? Oh, well, it'll still be fun."

A small bit of doubt crept into his heart. _Is that all I am to her?_ he wondered. _A convenient amusement? _He gave himself a mental shake. _Don't be such a jerk! She's a fellow Thundercat! She'd never do anything like that!_

* * *

Despite his secret doubts, Tygra nonetheless found himself courting Pumyra and enjoying it. He loved mysteries, there was just something so fascinating about solving them, and Pumyra seemed more and more like an exotic mystery every time he saw her (bringing with him a not-necessarily-required-but-what-the-hell-why-not flower each time). Even when he thought he'd finally figured her out, she'd pull out a new myriad of questions that needed to be answered, and the answers always surprised him. She was, to his mind, the best mystery ever.

And he hoped that he'd never solve her, because then he would have an excuse to never leave her side.

Somehow, his visits to the Lair ended with the two of them taking long walks all over Third Earth, just talking about random things. Sometimes, like now, he managed to pluck up his courage just enough to reach out and take her hand, and he'd feel a smile on his lips every time her fingers tightened around his.

"Have you had sex before?" she asked after there had been a minute or two of silence. The flower he'd managed to find this time was rather large, pink, and she didn't seem to want to put it down or behind her ear. In fact, she just kept holding it under her nose, breathing in its scent, and managing to look so beautiful and innocent, which he now knew she was not.

"Is that to be the new topic of conversation?" he replied. They were currently walking through the Warrior Maidens' forest, where the shade was cool and provided a small respite from the summer heat.

"Well, it only seemed natural to ask. I get the impression you haven't been with that many people, and you seem a little panicky whenever I bring up the subject."

"Uh, well…." He guessed she was right. He was terrified to admit that the only other person he'd ever been with was a man (and whether or not the other Thundercats knew it, he'd heard those rumors flying around), and there was a small part of him that really did not want to know just how many men Pumyra had been with. He had a nasty feeling it was a two-digit number.

"Either that, or you're frightened to admit that you've been with a person of the same sex."

He froze in place. _How does she DO that?_ he wondered. This was not the first time Pumyra had said something that struck a little too close to home; he briefly wondered if she could read minds.

She stopped a few feet from him and looked over her shoulder at him. She looked so innocent that way. "Am I right?"

"Um... well..." He found himself looking at his feet again. "Yes..."

"Then I guess that makes two of us."

It took a moment for that to sink in. As a matter of fact, they'd actually started walking again before he once again froze in place. _"What?_ You've been with a woman?!" The realization immediately brought to mind some very interesting—and very pornographic—pictures of Pumyra with Cheetara.

"_A_ woman? Hell, no. Several women."

An even more interesting picture came to mind, and Tygra had to quickly get it out of his head and concentrate hard on thinking of something non-sexual. Otherwise he might embarrass himself. _That's interesting, though,_ he thought once reason had overcome his stifled sex drive. _It had never occurred to me that Pumyra would have bisexual tendencies._ Unfortunately, that thought brought yet another pornographic picture of Cheetara and Pumyra to mind, this time with Panthro added in, and Tygra was concentrating so hard on getting it out of his head, he didn't notice right away that Pumyra was watching him with a mischievous smile. _Oh, no, not again…._

"Want to have sex?" she asked him, as she did at least once every five hours or so.

And it was only getting harder and harder to say no to her. "Pumyra, 'courting' has nothing to do with sex…."

She pouted. How could she do something so childish and yet manage to look pretty anyway? "If you insist."

Right at about this point they came to the edge of a lake. Tygra couldn't remember what it was called, but he was pretty certain that it was relatively harmless. Pumyra seemed to think so, too; she walked right up to the edge of the lake, took of her boots, sat on a rock near the edge, and dangled her toes in the water. Tygra sat beside her and contented himself with just looking at her out of the corner of his eye.

_Why am I stalling?_ he wondered. _Any other man I know would take her up on her offer within two seconds, and it seems to be exactly what she wants._

_**("How could you, Tygra? Look what you've done!")**_

He blinked and shook away the memory_. Maybe it's because she expects me to take her up on the offer, or because any other man would accept it. I don't want… to be just "any other man." I just…._

_**(Bengali, only fifteen years old, glared at him, while Serica slowly stood up, shattered glass crunching under her feet. "How could you, Tygra?")**_

He frowned. _Or, much as I hate to think it, is_ that _the reason?_

"Thinking of something?" Pumyra asked him.

"Sort of. Did you have siblings, Pumyra?"

"No. Just an uncle that wanted to get rid of me as fast as possible. Why do you ask?"

"It just occurred to me why women make me nervous." He closed his eyes, tightening his hold on her hand. "I had an older sister that I did not get along with; we fought quite a bit. I always felt guilty afterwards, but I could never bring myself to apologize to her, even if it was my fault. I… I guess you could say she frightened me a little."

"You fought with her?"

"Yes. Mother died shortly after Bengali was born, and Father had to work real often to support three growing children, so my sister ended up being the one taking care of Bengali and me. She was only a teenager; she couldn't go out with her friends, or join the clubs she wanted, or even go to school regularly anymore, not with the responsibility of raising her two little brothers in the absence of our parents. She had to quit school and ignore her friends' party invitations just to make sure that she could upkeep the house and make sure Bengali and I were fed."

"She sounds like a responsible woman."

He sighed. "She was. I didn't quite understand that when I was a child, and I held it against her. Years later, long after I left, I realized just how much stress she must have been under, and felt horrible for all the things I did to her. I guess a part of me was terrified that I was going to end up doing that to every woman I met. And if I like someone, that's the last thing I want to do."

"Did you get to apologize to her?"

"No. She left herself, not long after Father died. I never kept in contact with her, and Bengali doesn't know where she went. That was years before Thundera was destroyed. Honestly, I don't even know if she's still alive."

"But if she _is_ still alive, and you happen to meet her, would you apologize?"

"Yes."

She smiled at him. "You're nicer than I am. I don't care what excuses my uncle had, I'm not going to forgive him for what he did to me."

Tygra felt his curiosity peak. Especially as this was the first time she'd given him an opening to her past. "What did he do?"

"He betrothed me to some creep with a lot of money. And I do mean _creep;_ the man positively terrified me. I'd sooner marry Slithe, Tug Mug, or Mumm-Ra." She thought about that for a moment. "Okay, maybe not Mumm-Ra…."

Tygra thought about that for a moment. "A betrothal? That's funny, only highborn get…." He stared at her in surprise. "You… you're a highborn? But… that can't be right! Lynx-O said that when he met you, you were a street rat!"

"And I was. I met Lynx-O nearly ten years after I ran away from my uncle; during that time I was sleeping in piles of garbage, stealing food, and having sex with whoever to get some money in case of emergencies."

The number of people that Tygra imagined Pumyra had been with went from a two-digit number to a three-digit number. A _big_ three-digit number…. "You preferred that kind of life to marrying your betrothed?"

"I told you, he scared me. Or… it might be more accurate to say that I didn't feel safe with him. A lot of men I've met are like that."

"Is there any man you've been with that isn't?"

He meant the question to refer to her sex life, but ironically, she didn't take it that way. "You." Before he could say anything else, she leaned against his shoulder. "I feel safe with you. It's like I instinctively know that no matter what, you'll never intentionally harm me, or force me to do something I don't want."

Even though a tiny part of him was terrified at her little confession, he blurted out the first thing on his mind without even thinking about it. "That's because I love you," he whispered. "I only want you to be happy."

He'd half expected her to freak out, or worse, laugh. However, she didn't; her fingers squeezed his briefly, and she wiggled a bit to get into a more comfortable position while leaning on him.

* * *

It was dark out, nearly midnight. Tygra wasn't technically asleep, but he was certainly in that state of dozing where he couldn't move unless something startled him awake. He assumed it was because of the hideous heat; he'd stripped naked and didn't even bother with the thinnest of sheets because it was so hot. He lay on his bed, eyes closed, only vaguely aware that outside it had started raining.

A huge crack of thunder, one that sounded as if it were directly above the Tower of Omens, caused him to jump at least three feet into the air. That was probably a good thing, as he found he was suddenly chilled. Grumbling a little, he got out of bed and left his room to get a few blankets. Except that he didn't get any further than two feet from his bedroom door.

Pumyra was in the middle of the hall, soaking wet, and utterly terrified.

"Pumyra? What—" Before he could say anything else, she ran over and clung to him, shivering. He debated asking her what was wrong, and decided that it could wait for later. "Let's get you dry before you catch a cold," he told her gently, leading her to the closet that had towels and blankets in it.

He pulled out a large towel and turned to wrap her in it, freezing for a moment when he saw that she was stripping off all her clothing. "I can't stay in wet clothing," she replied in a shaky voice, taking the towel from him and wrapping herself in it. As he pulled out blankets, she whispered, "Can I stay with you tonight?"

He looked at her out of the corner of his eye, and decided she didn't mean anything lewd by what she said. _She must've had a nightmare,_ he thought, taking her arm and leading her (not entirely reluctant) back to his room. _Although I can't imagine what kind of nightmare would send her flying from Cats' Lair in the middle of the night, during a thunderstorm, just to spend the night with someone._

Five minutes later, they were in his bed, covered with the blankets. She'd curled up against him and almost immediately fell asleep. Hesitantly, he wrapped his arm around her shoulders, and realized he felt very protective of her.

_She believes that I can protect her from whatever it is that's frightening her. She trusts me without a second thought._ Somehow, that thought gave him more confidence than anything else.

The next morning, Tygra woke up to find Pumyra had draped herself across him at some point during the night. He didn't mind it too much (her soft body felt so… uh, soft), but it made it damned difficult to actually get out of bed without waking her up. That didn't stop him from trying, though. He almost managed it, too.

"Is it morning yet?" she slurred, stretching on the bed without getting up. It revealed a lot more of her than Tygra was willing to view at the moment.

He quickly turned away, hoping she wouldn't see his immediate reaction. "Yes, it's morning," he told her, rummaging through a drawer to get clean clothes.

She chuckled. "Nice ass," she purred sleepily.

He felt his face flush and glanced over his shoulder at her. She was in a rather enticing position… and had fallen asleep again. Before she could wake up and try seducing him again, he quickly got dressed and turned to leave the room. However, he couldn't resist pausing just long enough to cover her with the blankets and place a gentle kiss on her cheek before he left.

He didn't see the mischievous little smile that graced her face as she slept.

* * *

"I wonder why it's called the Field of Fertility," Pumyra said as they walked through the tall grass. She was holding tightly onto Tygra's hand, and didn't seem as if she was going to let go any time soon. "Bit of an odd name..."

"The soil is very fertile, perfect for the Berbils to grow their produce in," he replied. "At least, that's what I'd assume. Their Berbil fruit orchards and fields are certainly planted on the edge of the Field of Fertility. By the way... why are we walking here?"

"Because it's a beautiful day, and after last night's rainstorm, it's cool enough to have a picnic in the middle of the field without getting roasted."

"Uh… we didn't pack a picnic basket."

"You said yourself the Berbils grow everything right at the edge of the field. All we need to do is find a good spot, then one of us can stay at that spot while the other gets lunch from the Berbils."

He jumped over a stone. "I suppose." He noted with a grin that the stone was the last in a line of little rocks, almost like a mother duck with her ducklings. "You can be the one to stay in the field; I can get us something to eat." He managed to pull her to a stop and say, "And you'll still be fully clothed when I return, right?" _Because I don't know if I'll be able to keep my hands to myself if you're not,_ he thought, but didn't say.

"Do you want me to be?" she asked mischievously.

"N—yes." He tried to ignore her pouting. "This is courting, Pumyra, not seducing. There's a difference."

"What's the difference?" She was wearing that naughty little grin of hers again, and he had a suspicion that she knew what the difference was very well, but pretended not to just so she could hear him say it again.

"The difference is that seduction usually ends in one-night-stands or affairs that only last for a few months. Courting is when the couple is seriously considering marriage."

"I'll take your word for it."

They actually spent the better part of the afternoon in the middle of the field, just snacking on what Tygra had brought back from the Berbils. It wasn't even remotely romantic, at least not by his standards; especially not when they deliberately started throwing pieces of candy fruit at each other. So, how it was he found her in his arms, kissing and groping, and he returning each caress quite shamelessly, he never quite remembered.

* * *

Perhaps making love—Tygra was somewhat nervous about thinking of it as "sex"—in the middle of the Field of Fertility was hardly the best way to seduce or be seduced. However, rather than frightening Pumyra off or, even worse, tempting her to turn her attention elsewhere, he found instead that she had suddenly transformed from an untouchable Venus at the top of a tall pedestal to a loving—and very much within his reach—woman that seriously wanted to stay by his side for life.

Six months had passed, and it still bemused him that she didn't turn away from him at any point. He'd asked her a few weeks ago why she stayed with him; she'd giggled quite girlishly and replied, "Because you don't automatically assume that if you've had sex with me once, you can get it anytime you want. If anything, you act as if you must work all the harder for the next taste!"

He supposed she meant it as a compliment, but he couldn't help thinking that it was more cowardice than good sense that prevented him from just taking her into his arms whenever he wanted and… well. Then again, to one who'd practically spent her entire life being used as a plaything by a fairly large number of strange men, perhaps the novelty of having a boyfriend who only managed to unbend enough to make love to her about once every two weeks or so was too good a deal to give up.

Wrapped up in his own thoughts, he didn't even notice Pumyra was walking to the Tower of Omens until she'd practically walked through the front door. A little annoyed with himself, he ran downstairs to meet her, and was somewhat surprised when she handed him a pink flower. "Here," she told him with that gentle smile of hers.

"Uh, thanks."

"Is there a place where I can sit down? I'm a little tired after that walk."

A few minutes later they were back in the control room, with Pumyra sitting in one of the chairs at the edge of the room, and Tygra standing beside her. "What brings you here?" he asked, trying to sound casual and not very certain that he was succeeding.

"I found out why it's called the Field of Fertility."

He looked at her in confusion; she was wearing a look he'd come to recognize over the past few months. It was a look that told him she'd given him a hint and wanted to see if he could work out the answer on his own. It was almost a game between the two of them, with him trying to figure out what was on her mind. He didn't always succeed, but it was something he enjoyed doing nonetheless. Except that this time the answer that came to mind was one he hadn't initially expected. "You're pregnant?"

She nodded. She didn't look pregnant, but he'd heard that there were some lucky women who didn't show until the very end of the pregnancy. Pumyra could easily be one of them.

Now he felt like he needed to sit down. First came the thought: _I'm going to be a father._ It was immediately followed up with: _I'm going to be the father of an illegitimate child._ Hard on the heels of that came: _If my sister ever finds out, I'll never hear the end of it._

"So, any idea what we're going to tell the others?"

It hadn't even occurred to him to tell the other Thundercats. If anything, he wanted to go out of his way to make sure they _never_ found out… except that little things like growing babies were rather hard to hide after a while.

"I'll tell them," he said quietly after a moment of some heavy thinking. "I… just need to think about how I'm going to tell them…."

"Of course."

* * *

The gods, on the other hand, seemed to have different ideas on how the other Thundercats would be informed of the forthcoming bundle of joy. The next day, while Pumyra was sitting in the control room at Cat's Lair, telling her queasy stomach to quit making a nuisance of itself so she could eat something, she jumped at the sound of the alarm.

"Who in the world—?" She reached out and hit the key that turned on the viewing screen, and stared unbelieving at it. "Cracker and the Luna-taks! How did _they_ get here?" She hit the remote button for the drawbridge, but saw with annoyance that Captain Cracker and the Luna-taks had managed to jump on before it was too far from the edge of the cliff to cross. "So they want a fight, do they?" She stood up and pulled off her sling. "Then they'll get one."

Just then her stomach decided that she was going to be ill. _Very_ ill.

She fell to her knees, clutching her stomach with one arm, and her free hand over her mouth. _Damn it, what am I thinking? I can't fight them like this! One wrong slip and I'll miscarry! _That was something she did not even want to think about. Tygra was the only man she'd even met that she'd even considered carrying a child for, and the thought of being unable to do that for him, something she'd _never_ do for any other man, upset her.

She managed to get control of herself long enough to reach up and hit the panic button. It would send a distress signal to Tygra, and hopefully, he'd get here in time to do something. In the meantime, she proceeded to lock up as much of the Lair as possible, so that even if the Luna-taks made it to the front door, they'd have one hell of a time trying to get in.

* * *

_And Lion-O saved the day yet again, etc., etc…._ _Please refer to the episode "Cracker's Revenge" if a reminder is in order. Thank you!_

* * *

After Captain Bragg and Mandora had left, taking the Luna-taks and Captain Cracker with them, Lion-O looked around. "Hey, where's Pumyra? I thought she would've come out to see us."

"Well, the Sword of Omens told you she was in the Lair, so why don't we go look?" Cheetara suggested. "I'm sure she's alright."

Lion-O nodded. "Panthro, you stay here. Pumyra might've called Tygra for help, so he might be on his way. Cheetara and I will go inside and make sure everything's okay."

"Can do, Lion-O," Panthro replied with a smile. "Just don't take too long. I might get bored enough to jump off the cliff!"

Once inside the Lair, it didn't take long to find Pumyra. There was really only one place she could be, and sure enough, she was in the control room, sitting back in the main chair with one hand over her eyes and the other on her stomach.

"Pumyra, are you alright?" Cheetara asked, quickly going to stand beside the puma. "You didn't come out to see us."

"I couldn't," she replied in that calm way of hers. "The baby had other ideas."

"Baby?" Lion-O looked around the room, as if expecting a cradle would pop up out of nowhere with a child in it. "What baby?"

Cheetara caught on a little faster than he did. "Pumyra—you're pregnant?"

"Didn't Tygra tell you?" Pumyra queried. "He said he would."

"No. He was probably planning on getting around to it." Cheetara looked over at Lion-O, and found she had to resist the urge to laugh hysterically. The look on his face was one of total shock. "Close your mouth, Lion-O, you look like you're trying to catch moths."

His mouth snapped shut.

"How much longer before you're due? Do you know?"

Pumyra thought for a moment. "I'm guessing about two months or so from now. Why?"

"Patient as Tygra might be, I think even he might panic if he found out he had to help you give birth. I've noticed men seem to want to avoid that whenever possible." She looked at Lion-O. "I don't suppose you can have it arranged for Tygra to visit everyone on Thundera for a while in about two months, could you? That way, I can stay here on Third Earth in his place and help Pumyra when the time comes."

A little dense he might be on occasion, but Lion-O did have a tendency to grasp facts quickly when necessary. "Sure I can, and I'll have Kit and Kat stay here with you as well, so neither the Tower nor the Lair will be completely unguarded. That way, should anything happen, you'll have back up." He thought for a moment before looking at Pumyra and adding, "I… suppose that sooner or later I'm going to have to send someone else here anyway so that you and Tygra can be together…."

"If he agrees," Pumyra told him with a smile.

* * *

_Please insert episode "Mossland Monster" here._

* * *

"No more moss monsters," Pumyra told Tygra firmly.

"I can guarantee that one. No more moss monsters."

She was sitting on the edge of the bed, arms crossed, and looking down at him disapprovingly. He was on one knee before her, holding onto her left hand, and trying to convince her he'd be a good husband. "And no more rushing through meteor showers. If we have the baby with us, then safety comes first."

"I've learned my lesson. No more rushing through meteor showers." To himself he thought, _Definitely not. As it is, I'm lucky I'm alive right now. _His eyes stole over to the little cradle in the corner of the room, where their daughter, no more than a few days old, slept quietly. When he returned yesterday from his trip to New Thundera, he'd spent the rest of the afternoon cradling her in his arms and just plain being a proud new daddy.

Pumyra noticed where he was looking, and smiled mischievously. "And one other thing…."

"What's that?"

"As soon as I've healed up from giving birth to your child, we're going to have Lion-O send Bengali over to baby-sit her so that we can lock ourselves into the bedroom and have sex for a week."

* * *

**End of Prologue.**


	2. Part One: Reluctance

As an added interest for people who are bored: my own random set of notes at the end of each part! Because my interests are _that_ obscure, they need to be explained. _Huh… maybe I should… nah._

5/6/2006?

* * *

**Part One: Reluctance**

_**(Jaga nodded solemnly to Serica. "I thank you, young lady, for agreeing to this."**_

"_**Yeah, whatever," she replied curtly. Tygra, only twelve, tried to pull away, but her grip on his hand was too strong. "Maybe I'm not the best person in the world for being relieved that I'll be rid of my brother."**_

_**Jaga looked her up and down. She wasn't much to look at right then; for a white tigress from a well-bred family, she was quite unkempt. Her hair, pulled into the usual pigtails, was nonetheless a horrid mess; there were stains on her purple suit from dirt, sauce, even chocolate (the last courtesy of Tygra); and it looked as if it had been put on directly from the dryer. On top of that, there were circles under her eyes, and she was wearing a sour expression. "I wouldn't be so quick to judge you on a little matter like that," Jaga told her. "You're just a responsible young woman who has found herself in the middle of a situation that's over her head." He looked down at Tygra, not unkindly, but there was a kind of sternness there that made the youngster stop squirming. "I'm sure that your brother will better appreciate just how much you've done for him when he's older."**_

_**Serica snorted, as if she were all too certain that, Thundercat or not, Tygra would remain a little jerk. "Whatever."**_

_**Jaga held his hand out to Tygra. "Come on, little one. We must be on our way to Cats' Lair."**_

_**For a split second, Tygra wanted to refuse. If he were taken to Cats' Lair to be trained as a Thundercat, it could all too easily be years before he was able to see his family again. He didn't want to leave his father, and he certainly didn't want to leave his little brother, Bengali, who stood sniffling on Serica's other side.**_

_**However, when he glanced up at Serica, he saw that she wasn't even looking at him. Of course, that only brought back all the horrid things she'd done. If the price of staying at Cats' Lair meant not seeing her for the next ten years or so, then it seemed reasonable enough.**_

_**He snatched his hand from hers and took Jaga's instead. He didn't look back at her, not even when she and Jaga bid farewell. Only when he heard Bengali start crying did he dare a glance backward; Serica was already walking away at a fast pace, holding six-year-old Bengali in her arms and letting him cry on her shoulder. Tygra tried to go back, if only to reassure Bengali that he wouldn't be gone forever, and found to his dismay that Jaga's grip on his hand was even tighter than his sister's.**_

"_**No, Tygra," Jaga replied. "It's hard enough for your sister and brother as it is; a long good-bye would only make it worse."**_

"_**I don't care about Serica, I just want to say good-bye to Bengali!" Tygra replied.**_

_**Jaga once again gave him that penetrating look. "All the more reason **_**not **_**to let you. When you are older, and more able to appreciate how much your sister has given up for you, then you will see them again."**_

"_**She hasn't done anything! She's just a selfish bitch."**_

"_**If you truly hate your sister, Tygra, then you're hardly going to like**_** me." **_** Jaga's look took on an almost evil appearance. "I'm going to ask that you not speak of her in such a way again, and I feel I must repeat myself: when you are older, you will be more able to appreciate just how much your sister has given up for you.")**_

Tygra woke up with a start. It took him a moment to remember where he was; the moon was shining in through the window, and it was possible to hear the trees outside Cats' Lair rustling slightly in the night wind. It was so different from the city life he grew up with; it was hard to believe he was the same person.

_Has it really been that long?_ he wondered, sitting up in the bed and glancing out the window. _It's been… over thirty years since that happened. And I only saw her twice after that. Father's funeral and…._ He winced a little, remembering that the last encounter he'd had with his sister had resulted in a vicious fight that had alienated the two of them and had almost earned him Bengali's hatred. _If Jaga had known just how old I would have to be before I could stop hating my sister, he never would have allowed me to go home that day._

He cautiously got out of the bed, careful not to wake up Pumyra, and tiptoed over to the cradle in the corner of the room. Little Tyri was there, curled up on her side and sleeping peacefully. Tygra reached in and gently touched her cheek. Tyri could be a downright nuisance at times, and she was barely a year and a half old. He found himself wondering just how much trouble an angry six-year-old must have been for Serica to handle, especially with a newborn baby to take care of at the same time.

_I don't even know what I would say to her after all this time. Assuming she's still alive. Hah, and here I told Pumyra should I ever meet my sister again, I'd apologize to her for everything I did. Right. Serica would probably spit in my face, and truth be told, I wouldn't blame her._

Sighing, he went back to bed. He, Pumyra, and Tyri were heading off to New Thundera in the morning, and since he was driving, he needed to be fully rested. He didn't think it was possible for him to go to sleep for the next hour, but he must've been more tired than he thought, guilt or no guilt. As soon as his head touched the pillow, he was asleep again.

This time without dreams.

* * *

Meanwhile, on Plun-Darr, a strange event was taking place. The motors of a spaceship, hidden at the edge of the city, had been turned on and were running gently. It had been over fifteen years since they were last run, and were long overdue for a warm-up.

Rataro stood nearby, arms crossed, and looking as if he wasn't sure he should be pleased with himself, or annoyed. "I've tested the young Lord twice to see if he is truly worthy of what his father requests," Rataro was telling the quartet that stood in front of him. "Three times is the charm, they say, so don't be shocked if I happen to pay him a third visit, this time on the New Thundera itself."

The tallest member of the group, a wolf-man from the look of him, nodded briefly. "We understand your concern, Rataro. You value intelligence and persistence above all else, and Claudis agreed that an understanding at least be possible, if nothing else."

"He is not to know until the proper time. That way, they will both feel annoyed by it; that will give them some common ground right at the first. As it is, I still have some convincing to do on my part. Now, be on your way. I'm sure Jaga and Claudis await your return."

The quartet saluted Rataro, the youngest one doing so with a slight bounce, and quickly boarded the ship to leave Plun-Darr and head to New Thundera.

* * *

Lion-O and Bengali stood outside the Cats' Lair on Thundera, watching as the Feliner landed gently not far from them. Snarf was nearby, unable to keep still, and probably more excited than the other two. "A baby!" he was saying. He'd been repeating himself for the last hour, so Lion-O and Bengali were rather ignoring him. "There hasn't been a real baby in the Lair ever since Lion-O was born! I'll be able to take care of a baby again!"

Bengali and Lion-O glanced at each other and rolled their eyes. "That's assuming Tyri even likes you, Snarf," Bengali said. "Tygra told me she can be real difficult that way."

"Nonsense! She likes you, doesn't she? She'll just love old Snarf!"

"Just 'cause she likes me doesn't mean the feeling is mutual," Bengali replied with a slight growl. "I don't do very well with young kids…."

"What about the time that Herculus baby got dropped off on the Lair doorstep some years ago back on Third Earth, Snarf?" Lion-O inquired with a smile. "Surely you had fun taking care of him, right?"

Snarf actually shuddered in horror. "That wasn't fun! That was a nightmare! The kid nearly wrecked Cats' Lair, beat the crap out of the mutants, DID wreck Castle Plun-Darr, and screamed loud enough to break glass for two miles around! If I never see that kid again, it'll be too soon!"

"Is he exaggerating?" Bengali asked curiously.

"Only about the glass," Lion-O answered with a chuckle. "The kid only screamed loud enough to break the glass for _one_ mile around the Lair…."

At that point, the Feliner came to a complete stop, and upon shutting off the engines, Tygra jumped out of the cockpit. "Lion-O, Bengali, it's great to see you again! Where are the others?"

"Panthro took Wily Kit and Kat out on a training mission, and as I'm sure you know, Cheetara and Lynx-O are covering for you two on Third Earth."

"Hi, Tygra," Snarf said as he ran past them towards Pumyra, who held a squirming little cub in her arms. "Pumyra, Pumyra, let me see her! Let me see Tyri!"

"Well, okay, Snarf, but she can be a real pest sometimes." Pumyra shrugged as she set the child down on the ground. "Show Snarf what you can do, Tyri. Go on!"

Tyri took two steps towards Snarf, and then unexpectedly squealed happily and started running.

"That's it! Come to Uncle Snarf!" Snarf said happily, his arms open wide to give the cub a hug. It took him a few moments to realize she'd run past him to latch herself onto Bengali's leg. "Nobody loves me anymore, snarf, snarf…."

"Tygra, could you please remove your offspring from me?" Bengali growled in annoyance.

"A few minutes won't kill you," Tygra replied with a grin. "Consider it payback for annoying me when you were little." He ignored Bengali's look of disgust and glanced at Lion-O instead. "Anything new going on around here?"

"Nothing important. There is another ship coming in later in the afternoon. Panthro mentioned it as being a little odd."

"How so?"

"The two Thundarians on board asked to speak directly to either Jaga or Claudis. They knew that Thundera had been destroyed originally, but were completely taken aback when they found out both Jaga and my father were dead. Panthro said they even looked a little worried."

"That's weird," Pumyra said thoughtfully. "I don't think it's normal for random Thundarians to ask to speak directly to any Lord of the Thundercats without so much as a 'by your leave'."

"There's that. Also, when Panthro offered to put them in contact with Jagara, the women said that she wouldn't know."

"Wouldn't know what?"

"They didn't say. However, they did agree to meet with us all after they landed, but they insisted that we do so out in the country, where no one will see us."

"It almost sounds like a trap," Tygra muttered. "Is there anything else?"

"Panthro said he only saw the two women on the tele-screen, but the scanners told him that there were four people on board, one of them either quite young or very short."

"You're not going to see them alone, are you?" Pumyra asked.

"No. Bengali and Panthro will be coming with me; I'd like it if you could come too, Tygra. That way, if it does turn out to be a trap, at least the odds will be even."

* * *

The ship had already landed. It was a rather attractive ship, in an evil sort of way; it was as black as sin, slender and sleek for speed, and probably just barely large enough for the four people living on board. "I pity them," Panthro said as they stopped the Thunder Tank not far from the ship.

"What makes you say that?" Bengali asked.

"Look how small that ship is; it's clearly meant for long journeys, yet there's probably less room inside there than there is in the Feliner. You know how annoyed we all get if there's more than five of us in the Feliner for an extended period of time. The group in that ship are either the best of friends, more patient than saints, or two short steps from slitting each other's throats."

There was about five minutes of total silence. "So… are we actually going to get out of the Thunder Tank, or just keep sitting here?" Lion-O suggested.

Almost reluctantly, the four of them jumped out of the Thunder Tank and headed towards the ship. They all stopped dead when the docking bay door of the ship slowly opened and lowered to the ground. Then two of the occupants slowly descended.

The first woman was probably from the golden cat tribes; it was hard to tell, as she was almost completely covered in a tight black suit from shoulders to toes, with a black scarf around her lower face so that only her bright green eyes could be seen. The only other clue as to her possible lineage was her hair, which was bleach blond, a stark contrast to her dark gold fur. She didn't appear to be armed, but the way she held herself hinted otherwise.

The second woman, upon stepping out of the shadows, caused Tygra and Bengali to gasp; if she noticed them do so, she didn't reveal it by her actions. She was a white tigress, in an outfit done entirely in shades of lavender and violet, hair pulled back into pigtails. She carried an enormous portfolio over her shoulder, and considering the way it swung, it was all too possible that whatever was in it was very heavy. Attention was drawn to her feet almost immediately; her boots had steel toes and heels, which _clanked_ on the metal docking bay and _thudded_ on the ground. Lion-O found himself pitying anyone foolish enough to get himself kicked by those vicious boots.

He stepped forward, glancing quickly at the Sword of Omens to see if it made anything of the situation. It didn't. "Greetings, I am Lion-O, Lord of the Thundercats—"

"Good shing, too, osah-wise sah intah-ropah in que-shun ood be in big tlouburu," the golden cat said in a horridly thick accent.

The tigress scowled at her friend before turning to the puzzled Thundercats. "Don't mind her, she speaks thickly at first on purpose. She's a bit of bitch that way."

Lion-O shrugged. "To each his own. And who might you be?"

The tigress bowed slightly. "Greetings to you, Lord Lion-O. I am Serica. My annoying comrade is called Venenum… though I suspect it isn't her real name since she can't even pronounce it properly."

Venenum ignored Serica, paying undivided attention instead to the Thundercats. She looked pleased about something, though it was hard to tell with half her face covered. _"Ah, yorrin desuka? Iin desuyo…."_

"Don't be rude," Serica snapped at her.

Lion-O cleared his throat to regain Serica's attention. "You asked for my father and Jaga when you made contact earlier. Might I ask why?"

"Because we wished to tell them that we completed the mission they sent us out on fifteen years ago," Serica replied. "Unfortunately, you're going to have to forgive us for not telling you the whole of it now. Just as you obviously don't trust us enough to scan our ship and find out we've four people in total, we don't really trust you to be who you say you are. Lion-O was, after all, a young boy when we last saw him."

Lion-O was startled. Somehow he'd thought she'd deny there were four people on the ship. "Alright, you've confirmed something we were wondering about, so why are only two of you here?"

Serica smiled. It wasn't a nice smile; something about it struck him as sinister. "We'll get to that later, youngster. Don't you want to know why we asked to see Jaga and Claudis? I'm sure you've been wondering about that."

"Don't change the subject!" Panthro interrupted. "Where are the other two?"

Venenum glanced her. _"Doushite iya na no?"_

"I told you not to be rude." Serica looked over her shoulder into the ship. "You heard the Thundercat Lord, Aequo. He's not Claudis, but you can't hide from him forever."

"And what of the boy?" a deep voice from within the ship asked.

"Bring him, too."

Not twenty seconds later, Lion-O saw why the other two had stayed on the ship. First came a young boy dressed in brown leathers and black boots that, upon first glance, seemed to be a Thunderian. When he stopped at Serica's side and looked curiously at the Thundercats, however, it became obvious that he was _not_ a full-blooded Thunderian, but a rare half-breed between Thunderian and the peoples from Plun-Darr's moons. His skin was dark, almost black, which argued for a panther-clan parent, but his hair was white, his eyes yellow, and large ears stuck out on either side of his head.

Then came a mutant. An enormous mutant. By the looks of him, he could easily take on Mumm-Ra in a fist fight and probably not even break a sweat. He was of a type Lion-O had never seen, though he'd heard of them: a wolf-man. He was dark gray (with a tail; Lion-O had somehow come to the conclusion that only reptilians had tails), and dressed in blood red, with both an axe and a sword strapped to his back. He had steel plates over his elbows and knees with sharp blades on them, arguing for someone who was fully prepared to fight in close quarters, and fight dirty. Probably the strangest of all, the violet eyes he turned towards Lion-O were full of humor.

"Wha—what the hell is going on here?" Panthro spluttered.

"As you can see, two of our number are not Thundarians in the strictest sense," Serica said calmly, as if she wasn't at all bothered by being stuck in a ship with a mutant. She probably wasn't; neither she nor Venenum seemed tense in his presence. Quite the opposite; they were both quite relaxed. "Allow me to introduce Aequo Animo, a wolf-man from Plun-Darr," she motioned towards the mutant, who nodded his head towards the Thundercats, "and our trainee, Ater." She placed her hand on the boy's head. "We come as a quartet or not at all; if you tell Aequo or Ater to leave, Venenum and I leave with them."

Lion-O looked at the group curiously, all the while quite aware that the Sword of Omens was not in the least bit bothered by any of the four. "As a quartet… and you wished to see Jaga and Claudis… you're not Thundercats, are you?"

Venenum laughed viciously. Without missing a beat, Serica whapped her upside the head. "No, we're not Thundercats, Lord Lion-O. We're a select group of individuals trained in the gathering of information, watching suspected criminals, and, in extreme cases, eliminating someone that would otherwise be difficult to get rid of."

Panthro figured out what she'd said before the others did. _"You're spies and assassins?"_

"We prefer to avoid the latter, but in the long run, yes. And we answer _only_ to the Lord of the Thundercats."

Lion-O tried to say something a couple of times, except that he couldn't think of anything. He glanced at the others to see what they made of this; Panthro looked as if he'd just walked into the middle of something he'd rather have never known, and Bengali looked as if he'd been doused with a bucket of ice water. Tygra's expression was strangely blank.

_This is a fine kettle of fish we've fallen into,_ Lion-O thought. _I can see Snarf having a heart attack already…._

"I see this comes as a shock," Serica said, her nasty smile growing. "I'm sure you're going to wish to return to the Cats' Lair to discuss this strange twist of events with the other Thundercats. If that's the case, the four of us will retire to our ship, and wait for your return." She nodded to the others, and they turned to go back into the ship.

"Wait, Serica!" Bengali ran forward and stopped a foot or two from her. "I… I…." Whatever it was he wanted to say, he couldn't quite get it out.

Nonetheless, she seemed to understand, and smiled at him. "I've missed you, too, Bengali. But in this instance, business must come before pleasure. We can reminisce on old times later." And with that, she followed her comrades back into the ship.

* * *

"_SPIES AND ASSASSINS?!"_ Snarf shouted, having the predictable heart attack. He was pacing around the council chamber while the others sat, stunned, in their chairs. _"WHY DO YOU HAVE SPIES AND ASSASSINS AT YOUR BECK AND CALL?!"_

"She didn't say that, Snarf," Lion-O said with annoyance, rubbing his forehead. "She said that they only answer to me. As for why, Jaga and my father aren't exactly around to answer that for us."

"I don't suppose you could ask Jaga to answer this question for us, could you Lion-O?" Panthro asked. "He does come to you after all…."

"Not always. It's more accurate to say he comes when he chooses, not necessarily when I want him to come. Besides, even if he did tell me that these four are on our side, would you believe him?"

The expected negative answer came from an unexpected source. "No," Tygra replied. "I wouldn't. I'd still distrust them."

"You're only saying that because of Serica!" Bengali snarled, standing up. "She could be ratified as a fucking saint by the Sword of Omens, Mumm-Rana, Jaga, _and_ the Vatican, and you'd still claim she was evil!"

Tygra looked as if he would've gladly jumped over the table to beat the crap out of Bengali. Lion-O was glad when Pumyra interfered. _"Sit down, _Tygra, Bengali!" she snapped. Since she rarely raised her voice, it had the desired effect of getting Tygra and Bengali's attention. "This is not the place for squabbling like a pair of children!"

"You ever get that feeling where you wished you were somewhere else?" Wily Kit whispered to her brother. "I'm getting that feeling right now…."

As Tygra and Bengali sat down, Lion-O looked back and forth between the two of them. "Alright, the two of you seem to at least know who Serica is, and it seems to me she's the one in charge. So who is she?"

It was Bengali who replied. "She's our older sister, Lion-O. I know it doesn't seem like much coming from me, but she's got a good heart! She'd never do anything—"

Tygra's bark of laughter was just as acidic as Venenum's had been earlier. "Oh, she wouldn't, would she?"

"_Stop that!"_ Pumyra gave Tygra a glare that made him wince and look guilty.

Snarfer, sitting on the windowsill, giggled, which caused everyone to give him dirty looks. He shrunk a little under their gazes, but didn't stop smiling. "It's just that we ought to be most worried about the wolf-man, and here we are arguing about the white tigress instead. It's ironic, snarfer, snarfer!" When their looks darkened, he scratched his head. "What?"

Lion-O cleared his throat, getting everyone's attention back to him. "Alright, so now we have two opinions on Serica, both of them radically different, but she's only one. What about the rest?"

"That Venenum strikes me as the main murderer if someone needs to be knocked off," Pumyra said. "If 'Venenum' is a name she chose, which sounds like it is derived from the word 'venom', then it seems to me she's more dangerous than the others. Probably a poisoner."

"What about the Luna-tak child?" Wily Kat asked. "Shouldn't we be worried about him? The Luna-taks were never anything more than big trouble."

"I don't think so," Panthro said. "First of all, I'd place some strong bets that he's a mixed breed. He's definitely got Thunderian panther clan parentage, possibly either of Ice or Psychic Luna-tak decent, or both. My personal guess is at best, he'll have strength, ice, fire, and psychic powers; at worst he'll have nothing. Second, he can't be more than four or five at the oldest."

Snarf grabbed Lion-O's arm. "What about the mutant, Lion-O, snarf, snarf?"

"I really don't know about _him,_ Snarf. The Sword of Omens didn't seem bothered by any of the four, and the mutant seemed more willing to trust us than we were to trust him."

"I wish Lynx-O and Cheetara were here," Wily Kit said into the following silence. "They'd be able to tell immediately if these spies were dangerous to us."

"Unfortunately, they're not, and they're not planning on returning for another month. We're just going to have to do our best without them. Any suggestions?" Lion-O noticed with annoyance that it looked as if another shouting match was going to blow up between Tygra and Bengali. "And the next person who raises his voice above normal speaking level will find himself thrown out the window."

Tygra and Bengali froze for a moment, saw that he wasn't kidding, and sank back into their seats.

Snarfer was smiling again. "Well, we can't leave them outside where just anyone could find them. If they are on our side, then we can't exactly have random passersby spot the mutant or half-breed, and if they're _not_ on our side, then wouldn't it make sense to have them close enough for us to keep an eye on them? Snarfer. You know the saying: 'keep your friends close, but keep your enemies closer'. Especially mutants."

"We didn't do that for the mutants, the Luna-taks or Mumm-Ra," Snarf admonished his nephew. "Why should we do it now?"

"We didn't need to keep our enemies close to us on Third Earth, Snarf, because they did that for us," Panthro told him. "We practically couldn't turn around without running into one or more of them. And Snarfer's right; with that group right here under our noses, it'd be more difficult for them to hide what their intentions are from us. If they're against us, sooner or later they'll slip up and we'll catch them at it." He leaned back in his seat a little. "I'd really like to know what that mutant is doing here…."

"Not in the Lair," Pumyra said firmly.

Lion-O nodded, not needing to see the worried glance she sent in the direction of the napping Tyri. "I agree with you there, Pumyra. Not in the Lair. However, now that the wall has been built around the Cats' Lair, we can have them park their ship within the walls. That way, the general public won't see them, and we can still watch them."

"While they watch us," Tygra added ominously. "You heard Serica; they're just as likely to distrust us as we are to distrust them, and it's all because none of us really know them or vice versa."

* * *

Panthro was sitting in the middle of the control room, feet propped up on the control board in front of him, arms crossed, dozing. The four spies had been waiting for the Thundercats as promised, and were perfectly willing to move their ship into the front court area of the Cats' Lair. Panthro suspected that the four knew why they were being moved there, but no one had really said anything, so they all continued as if it were merely common courtesy.

His ears pricked up at the sound of a pair of running feet. He opened his eyes and looked at the door just in time to see Wily Kit and Wily Kat run into the room. "Aren't you two supposed to be in bed?"

"Tygra and Pumyra are having an awfully nasty argument," Wily Kat replied as the pair stopped beside him. "It's really kind of scary, Panthro; neither of them are the shouting type, and they're both practically screaming at the tops of their lungs."

"Mind if we stay with you for an hour or two?" Wily Kit asked. "By then they should've stopped, right?"

He sighed. "I figured this whole situation was going to be a problem. Yeah, grab a couple of seats." He removed his feet from the control board, uncrossed his arms, and started drumming his fingers on the board instead. "Tygra seems to be very upset about this whole thing; first he and Bengali blew up at each other, now he and Pumyra are at it. Remind me to get to the bottom of that and figure out what the hell Tygra's problem is."

Wily Kat went over to one of the empty chairs and sat in it, but Wily Kit perched on the edge of the control board. "I've never seen him like this, Panthro. It's like he really hates his sister, and I just can't imagine why."

"I'd be more inclined to think that he's angry with her for something," Panthro told her, "and whatever it is, he knows it but doesn't want to admit it."

Something on the control screen popped up, distracting them. "What in the world?" Wily Kat blinked. "How the heck did they do that?"

On the control screen, a box had popped up in the corner. In the center of it was: I ASSUME SOMEONE'S ON GUARD DUTY?

The three of them stared at it for a moment. "How are we supposed to reply?" Wily Kit asked. "This computer isn't set up to type messages—"

The words in the box changed. NO NEED TO TYPE ANYTHING. I CAN HEAR YOU FINE. I COULD'VE HACKED INTO THE TELE-SCREEN PROGRAM, BUT I DIDN'T WANT TO STARTLE ANYONE.

"That answers that question." Panthro crossed his arms again. "Alright, no need to ask who you are, just which spy you are. And how did you mess with this control system?"

I'M AEQUO, THE WOLF-MAN. AS WELL AS A WARRIOR AND A SPY, I'M A COMPUTER HACKER.

"Bet that looks good on a resume…."

"Why'd you hack into our system?" Wily Kat asked.

OH, AND I SUPPOSE YOU WOULDN'T HAVE DONE THE SAME TO US IF YOU HAD THE NECESSARY KNOWLEDGE? :D

Wily Kit giggled. "Okay, he's got a point there."

Panthro closed his eyes for a moment. "I don't suppose you could stop listening for a moment, wolf-man. Say about three minutes?"

I CAN. I MERELY NEED TO SHUT OFF THE PROGRAM. WOULD YOU LIKE ME TO DO SO?

"Just for three minutes."

Almost immediately, the box that had appeared on the control screen winked out. Wily Kit stared at that spot for a moment more, as if she expected it to return. "I don't suppose he can still hear us, can he?"

"He might, but that's not what I was thinking of." Panthro cracked his knuckles. "I don't want him sending opinions over to modify my way of thinking. I want to meet this Aequo." He grinned. "Let's invite him over for a midnight snack."

Wily Kit and Wily Kat looked at each other in shock. "But Lion-O said he didn't want them in the Lair!" Wily Kit hissed in surprise.

"True, but I think he meant more on a long term basis. We're only inviting this Aequo in for an hour or two, and we can keep a close eye on him during that time so he can't do any snooping. If worse comes to worse, we know the territory, and it'll be very difficult for him to try anything with three of us in the same room."

Wily Kat didn't look too certain. "I suppose… but what if he brings over something and expects us to eat it? Pumyra said that the Venenum woman might be the main killer, and it probably wouldn't be too difficult for her to poison a few cookies and tell this mutant which ones not to eat."

"So we don't eat anything he brings. If he keeps insisting, we'll know he's up to something."

Wily Kit ran her fingers through her hair. "I don't know, Panthro. We've never had to deal with a wolf-man before, and you yourself said he's much larger than S-s-slithe."

"It's always best to know your enemy, and what better way to give ourselves the opportunity to know him better?" Panthro felt his grin widen. "For example, we already know he's a computer hacker, and he mentioned something about being a warrior, too."

Wily Kit and Wily Kat still looked a little uneasy.

"Here, let me tell you why I think he won't try anything: whatever else this group might be, they're certainly not stupid. For example, Serica is the older sister of Tygra and Bengali. If she'd wanted to get the group an immediate spot inside the Lair, I'll bet you anything she'd have played on that relationship with everything she had. Bengali would've immediately backed her up, even if Tygra didn't. If Venenum had any connections either, she would've played them as well."

"But they didn't." Wily Kit thought for a moment. "As a matter of fact, you mentioned earlier that Serica didn't even acknowledge Bengali until he acknowledged her first."

Wily Kat nodded. "If they are trying to get into our good graces, that certainly sounds like a roundabout way of doing so."

"Exactly; whatever else they're up to, they're leaving us to decide for ourselves what to do with them. Serica even said that if we really don't want Aequo and the boy around, we just need to tell them to leave, and the whole lot would leave. The way she said it, I'll bet you my nun-chucks and the Thunder Tank that she meant it."

The twins looked at each other, shocked for a second time that night. "He's betting with the Thunder Tank," Wily Kit said. "He never does that…."

Wily Kat looked at Panthro again and shrugged. "Well… what do you want to snack on, then?"

* * *

It took about ten minutes of scrambling around. First Wily Kit and Wily Kat raided the kitchen for munchies while Panthro stayed in the control room, then the twins stayed in the control room while Panthro escorted the wolf-man into the Lair. After quick introductions, everything was prepared.

Aequo was glancing around appreciatively, while they headed towards the chairs Wily Kat had dragged into the center of the control room. There was a small table close enough for them all to reach with a pot of tea, four mugs, and a bowl of candy fruit. The wolf-man was even more impressive indoors than he'd been the first time Panthro saw him; Aequo had to actually bent down a little in order to pass through some of the doorways.

"This is an impressive fortress," he said appreciatively, turning one of the chairs around so he could sit on it backwards. His tail swished back and forth a bit. "There are no windows near the ground, the air ducts appear to be quite small, your intruder alert system is well hidden, and the floor plan seems to be just random enough to confuse enemies should they actually manage to get inside. Very good."

"It's not that good if you were able to see everything," Wily Kat told him.

Panthro thought the mutant would be insulted, but rather, Aequo looked amused. "I'm a spy, little one; it's my job to look for such things. Normally, either Venenum or I would be the ones to enter buildings without tripping alarms, but this place is built well enough that it would be very difficult for us. The windows are too far from the ground for me to reach, and the air ducts appear to be too small for Venenum. Serica probably wouldn't be able to enter as long as the intruder alert system was still on, not with it hidden as well as it is. Not to mention if any of us had to make a quick escape, we'd be at a disadvantage; with everything built somewhat randomly, there's no guarantee that the room we chose would have a window for us to get out."

While Wily Kit and Wily Kat tried to puzzle that out, Panthro could help but be impressed himself. "So, the three of you work as a team. And a well-oiled one, from the sounds of it; you seem quite certain of what your comrades can and can't do."

Aequo nodded. "There are plenty of times where we've been in situations that could've all too easily gotten us killed if we didn't work together. We have to know what we can all do in order to do our job."

"Could you give us an example?" Wily Kat asked. "I'm still trying to picture it…."

The wolf-man thought carefully for a moment before nodding. "Well, let's use something that has been done before: theft of important information. I can't jump very high, so if the windows are not close to the ground, I cannot get in. That means Venenum comes into play; she can jump higher than me, so she'll break into the building either via the windows or through the air ducts. If the ducts are too small, such as they are in your Lair, then we'd send in Ater instead, but he's so young we prefer not to do that."

"Ater is the boy, right?" Wily Kit asked. At Aequo's nod, she added, "Would he be able to fit into the air ducts in the Lair?"

"Yes; his mother was quite short, and his father was lanky and thin. It's not certain, but our guess is that even when he's fully grown he'd be able to fit into small air ducts, including those here at the Lair."

_Interesting,_ Panthro thought. _He's just practically told us that they have a way to break into the Lair using the boy. It's almost as if he's telling us so we can keep an eye out for it…._

"However," Aequo continued, "neither Venenum nor Ater has the expertise to shut off an intruder alert system. So, let's say it's Venenum that got in; she's also been trained to spot intruder alert systems, and would avoid them to get to the front door and let me in. Once inside, I myself must avoid the system, and must also pinpoint where the computer powering the system is. After finding it, I can easily dismantle the system, which allows Serica to get in without tripping the alarms."

"Wouldn't those boots of hers give her presence away?" Panthro asked.

The wolf-man's tone became stern. "Don't let her fool you. She could sneak right up behind you wearing those boots, and you'd never know it until her steel toe hit you in the temple."

_He might as well have told us to keep an eye out for that, too._

"Now, the reason for Serica is simple. I might be a hacker, but she's the one that knows what information to look for; she's always got her personal computer in her portfolio with her, and once I've used her computer to hack into the system, she can copy and save whatever it is that we need. Venenum watches our backs for us; if anyone happens upon us, he also happens upon one of the sleep gases that Venenum has with her. When everything's complete, Serica and Venenum leave, I reset all the systems, and leave by the front door, locking it before I close it." He smiled a little. "And if I'm feeling troublesome, I'll sometimes reset all the systems with different passwords…."

"You do realize you just told us how the four of you could sneak into the Lair, right?" Wily Kit asked.

Aequo grinned. It was a little unnerving to look at all those teeth. "There are numerous ways. I merely picked one." He reached out and picked up a cup of tea, breathing in the aroma briefly before taking a sip. "Mint tea. Good choice…."

"How do you know we didn't put something in it?" Wily Kat blurted out.

"Well, if you put something in it to put me to sleep or make me pass out, then I request that you not bang my head against anything when dragging me from one room to another. And even if you had poisoned it, which I doubt since you're all Thundercats, it wouldn't matter."

"An advantage to having that Venenum in your group?" Panthro ventured. _Let's see if he confirms Pumyra's guess._

Once again, the wolf-man nodded. "Yes; Venenum is careful that way. Serica and I are quite immune to a fair number of poisons, Ater is still having his immunity to the most common poisons built up, and I can guarantee you that Venenum is immune to _every_ poison that she could build up an immunity against. It can be very annoying, especially if the poison in question has a nasty taste to it." He paused in thought, as if something had just occurred to him. "I would strongly suggest that you do not try anything Venenum has prepared for herself. She never eats anything that has less than lethal amounts of poison."

_I want to trust this mutant,_ Panthro thought, faintly surprised. _That's a first. Usually I just want to beat them so badly they run off with their tails between their legs. But this one is almost so honest it hurts, and it seems he bathes regularly, which is a plus. He's not only giving us ideas of what they can do as a group, he's confirming our suspicions about each member of the group without batting an eye. Either this wolf-man is an excellent actor… or he's really on our side._

"Do you kill people?" Wily Kat asked bluntly.

Panthro resisted the urge to wince, though he wasn't too sure he succeeded. _Someone needs to teach the Thunderkittens tact…._

However, the mutant didn't seem bothered by the question, almost as if he had expected it. "Only when there is no other choice, and even then we go out of our ways to avoid doing so."

"How do you do that?"

Aequo sighed. "Let me explain something first. Our first priority is to be spies. The main goal of a spy is to get what is needed and get back to safety. Dallying for a fight is not only dangerous, but foolish. If I had important information on mutant attacks that I needed to get to the Lord of the Thundercats as soon as physically possible, I cannot stick around to kill anyone that gets in my way. There is always the possibility that I will lose, or that the information I'm carrying would be taken. Get in, get out, _and don't get caught._ That is how we work. Understand so far?"

The Thunderkittens nodded, and Panthro found himself listening with interest.

"There are only two situations in which we kill: in self-defense, or when the Lord of the Thundercats honestly believes there is no other choice. When it is in self-defense, it is because of a mistake. Venenum may carry poisons, but most of the vials on her person are sleeping gases or other similar concoctions meant to immobilize an enemy, not kill him. Serica never aims for the chest or head, where the slightest miscalculation could cause permanent damage or fatal wounds, but rather for the legs and arms, which can usually be healed up alright if a doctor is called fast enough."

"And you?" Wily Kit asked. "You've got that big axe and a sword."

"Like Serica, I aim for the legs and arms, or I use the flat of the blade. Normally, however, my size and a few fancy moves are enough to intimidate an enemy." He reached up, pulled the axe out of its holder, and held it out to her. She stared at it; Panthro had to admit to himself that it was a rather good-looking weapon. "Go ahead, take it."

"It's huge," she said, reaching out and taking the handle. "I don't know if I'm strong enough to—oh!" She held it easily in her hands, her eyes wide with surprise. "It's so much lighter than it looks!"

"And for good reason. The blade itself is as sharp as a razor, the steel is strong, and if I must pull back a blow, the entire weapon is light enough that I can do so without difficulty. Those holes in the blade are not merely for decoration; they leave a smaller amount of metal, creating a lighter weapon. My sword is of a similar make, though I can guarantee I try not to use it at all. The serrated edge is designed to create a lot of damage, and I prefer not to do that."

"Mind if I see?" Panthro reached out and took the axe from Wily Kit. He hefted it in his hand, liked the weight of it, and refused to give in to the desire to try a few fighting moves with it. Instead, he gently ran his thumb over the edge; the blade cut right into his skin with no effort, and he stared at the wound critically. "That is one _fine_ edge."

"Why's it so sharp?" Wily Kat asked.

"Remember that I told you that the only two situations in which we kill are self-defense and on order of the Thundercat Lord, and that when we kill in self-defense, it is because of a mistake? Venenum, in her haste, will grab the wrong vial; Serica's aim will be off just enough to break the spine."

"Or your own calculations work against you, and the blade bites where it wasn't supposed to," Panthro continued. A nasty memory tried to intercede inside his mind, but he forced it away. "At least if the blade is sharp, it will be quick."

Aequo nodded. "Yes. Venenum might be lucky enough to administer one of her antidotes if she grabs the wrong vial, but if Serica and I mess up, we can't always remedy the situation."

There were a few moments of silence, and Panthro was bothered when he realized that the wolf-man had grown quite melancholy. Wily Kat opened his mouth to ask yet another question, but Wily Kit kicked him in the leg. "Don't you dare ask him!" she snapped.

"You didn't even know what I was going to ask!" Wily Kat snapped back, rubbing his leg.

"I do, too, and I'm not going to let you say it!"

Aequo's ears pricked up while the twins squabbled. "Siblings?" he asked, looking at Panthro.

"Unfortunately," the panther replied, handing the axe back to Aequo, who slipped it back into its holder.

"Hmm." Ironically, the arguing duo seemed to lighten the wolf-man's mood. "Never had siblings myself, and after all that I've seen, sometimes I'm glad it was so."

Panthro picked up on the different subject almost eagerly. He had a nasty suspicion Wily Kat had been about to ask how many Aequo had killed, and the subject of siblings seemed a welcome relief. "Serica's got siblings, doesn't she?"

Aequo chuckled. "You know she does. Two younger brothers." He took another sip of tea. "She and Tygra used to have some horrible fights before he was taken by Jaga to be trained as a Thundercat…."

"She told you about that?"

"No. I saw some of those fights."

Panthro felt the hackles rise on the back of his neck, though he wasn't sure why. "You weren't spying on them, were you?"

"How do you think Claudis and Jaga knew where to look for new Thundercats? The Sword of Omens knows better than to interfere in that regard, but it would occasionally give them hints, which would result in one or both of them sending a spy out to search for the person in question. Tygra was one such; his illusionary powers were strong enough that if he hadn't been taken in hand soon, it's all too likely he would have harmed himself and his family."

_That explains something I'd wondered about,_ Panthro thought. _I_ was _being watched those few months before Jaga came for me. _ "Back to Serica, then. Since you watched her long before she was a spy, you've pretty much just told me that you've been a spy longer than her. However, it seems to me that she's the one that runs everything."

"And you'd be right. I have no leadership skills, and Venenum practically freaks out at the thought of being in charge. Ater's mother used to be in charge, but she died in childbirth, so Venenum and I bullied Serica into taking charge." He chuckled. "She nearly wanted to kill us for it, too. Because she's the 'leader', Ater automatically assumes that she's also his surrogate mother. If I remember correctly, she said something about someone cursing her to be saddled with troublesome boys one right after the other."

Panthro leaned back in his chair with his own cup of tea, ignoring the twins as they continued to bicker. "And he's a half-breed, isn't he? They're so rare; I can't imagine what it must be like to raise one. What's this little Ater like?"

"He's actually not too much trouble; Serica keeps him well in hand. He occasionally ices things, or sets something on fire by accident. He's got strength and some psychic abilities, but those tend to manifest only when he's terrified or angry. If he's frightened, he convinces the one frightening him that he isn't there; if he's angry, he tends to break things."

"Oh, that sounds like a lot of fun."

"I feel I must warn you, Panthro. Ater for the past year or two has been very interested in seeing what a Thunderian of the panther tribe is like."

"Why's that a warning?" Panthro thought for a moment. "Oh. He's probably going to try and pay me a visit, isn't he?"

"Yes. And while I'm certain you can handle fits of anger, I would suggest you not scare him. He can be annoyingly hard to find when he's frightened."

* * *

Lion-O looked at the written report Panthro had handed him. The Thundercats were sitting in the council room again, and Panthro and the Thunderkittens had just finished telling everyone everything Aequo had told them. To the Thunderkittens' relief, Lion-O wasn't upset about their inviting the wolf-man into the Lair. "It's rather strange," he said. "I would've thought this quartet would make life difficult for us, yet the mutant told you all of this without being pressured into it."

"He's lying," Tygra muttered.

"No, he couldn't have been!" Wily Kit replied. "He'd have to be a better actor than Mumm-Ra, and even Mumm-Ra couldn't fake being _that_ sincere without slipping up!" Wily Kat nodded emphatically beside her. Whatever else the others might think, Wily Kit and Wily Kat had been lured into trusting the mutant.

"We know some of what they can all do now, that they can probably get into the Lair without our knowing it, and that they're all dangerous." Lion-O rubbed his hand over his eyes. "It's like they're handing us all their cards and telling us to take a good long look; I want to trust them…."

"The mutant could all to easily have made up that stuff," Tygra snapped. "Probably the only true thing he said was that Serica was behind all this—"

"So now everyone involved with Serica is wrong?" Bengali shouted at him, standing up. Tygra got up as well, with a rather ugly look on his face. "So where does that leave me, Tygra?"

Lion-O groaned. "Not again…." Luckily, he was prepared this time. He just waved his hand in Snarf and Snarfer's general direction, and within seconds two buckets of water soared through the air and landed on the two tigers, dousing each of them from head to foot. At Tygra and Bengali's looks of shock, Lion-O calmly said, "I have two snarfs and twelve more buckets of water, and I'm not afraid to use them. You will _not_ argue about trifling matters."

"But Lion-O, I—" Before Tygra could finish, another bucket of water flew through the air and landed upside-down on his head, thoroughly soaking him.

Lion-O glared over his shoulder where the two snarfs stood by their makeshift catapults. Snarfer pointed at Snarf and said, "He did it!"

Snarf grinned sheepishly and scratched the back of his head. "Uh… my foot slipped…?"

Pumyra pointedly didn't look at Tygra as he took the bucket off his head and sat down. "Don't say you didn't deserve it," she told him. He looked as if he wanted to retort, but held his tongue.

* * *

Bengali sat on a rock on the edge of the Mosslands, staring out at the empty space before him. The sun was setting, and he knew he should be getting back to the Lair soon as he had first watch that night, but he just didn't want to be anywhere near Tygra at the moment. _By Jaga, what's his problem?_ he thought, resting his forehead against his hands. _Not two months or so ago he was telling me how he wished he could see Serica again, and now he's just flipped out. It's as if he won't even listen to reason anymore. For crying out loud, that fight was almost twenty years ago, can't he just forget it already?_

"Wow. So broody. I don't remember you thinking quite this much before."

He blinked and looked over his shoulder. "Serica!" he said happily, jumping to his feet. Then he remembered that it had been fifteen years since they last saw each other, and felt awkward. "I… Serica…."

"I finally get a chance to hug my baby brother for the first time in fifteen years and you want to give me a stutter-filled speech?" she asked him. He didn't wait for a second invitation; he ran the few feet towards her and grabbed her in a big bear hug, which she gladly returned. "That's better! That's the little Ben I know!"

"Serica, I've missed you so much! I was so scared when Thundera was destroyed that you—"

"Well, I wasn't. Sorry, but I didn't expect to be gone for so long." She pulled away from him and held him by the shoulders. "So let me look at you. Are we still as impulsive as ever? And a Thundercat, too! When the heck did that happen?" She raised an eyebrow. "Dare I ask how the other Thundercat of the family is?"

His smile faded a little.

"Ah. He's being a pill again, isn't he." It wasn't a question.

"Serica, I don't know what's wrong with him. I know he wanted to see you again, but… he's just…." He put his hands to his temples. "Jaga help me, I don't want to watch another fight like that!"

Serica shushed him. "There won't be another fight like that, Bengali, not if I can help it. 'Kay? That's a promise." She crossed her arms and sighed. "Truth is, I rather expected something like this. You've heard the saying 'absence makes the heart grow fonder,' right?"

He nodded. "But what's that got to do with this?"

"Everything. That little saying isn't just about lovers. It's about two people who love each other, whether they are parent and child, best friends… or brother and sister. It means that over time, you forget all the bad things about the person you love, and you only remember the good things… and you love them more, because they become perfect in your eyes. That's probably what happened to Tygra… and he got a really nasty wake up call. I'll bet you anything that looking at me again reminded him of all the horrid things about me, and he doesn't like it."

"There's nothing horrid about you."

She smiled. "Nice to know someone thinks that."

"I just want you two to get along…."

"Yeah, me too." She held his face between her hands and forced him to look directly at her. "I'll do what I can, Bengali, but on that matter I can't promise anything. I'll bet you Tygra's terrified of coming face to face with me again… and truth be told, so am I."

* * *

Serica walked slowly back to the ship, smiling slightly. The one following her was good, but he still messed up just often enough for her to hear him. _Poor amateur,_ she thought_. I'm going to have to give him lessons._ So, when she turned a corner, she pressed right up against the wall and waited. As Lion-O tried to sneak past, she stuck her hand out and stopped him. "Nice try, Lion-O, but did you really think you could follow a spy without getting caught?"

He looked a little sheepish. "Well… not really, but I figured I might as well try."

"Uh huh. And what if my job were to kill you? You do realize you would've made my life a whole lot easier, yes?"

He looked started.

"Hmm… you've still a lot to learn, I see. So, what did you want?"

"Where were you all those years? Maybe the other forgot about it, but I haven't."

She smiled a little. "You got all night? Come to the ship and have a cup of tea with me."

"What if you try to poison me?"

"Wouldn't your sword tell you?"

He looked at her suspiciously. "I suppose…."

"Then let's go."

* * *

Panthro was fixing the Thunder Tank, the cover open and he half inside the machine double-checking the engine and samoflange. He pulled his upper torso out of the machine and held up a piece of wire to the light. "Damn wire was faulty," he muttered. "No wonder the engine didn't behave. I'm going to have to replace the damn thing."

Something clanged nearby. He got completely out and looked around the hanger, wondering what had made the noise. Not seeing anyone, he shrugged, reached into the tool kit at his feet, and started rummaging around in it. Only after he'd found the roll of new wire and the shackler did he realize that there was another shadow over the floor and the toolbox beside his own. He blinked in surprise and looked to his side.

Squatting beside him, silent as the grave, and fascinated by all the tools and instruments, was the half-breed boy Ater. As if realizing he's been noticed, he looked right back at Panthro.

They stayed exactly where they were for a few minutes, just looking at each other. Finally, as if some unspoken signal had passed between them, Panthro stood up to measure the amount of wire he needed while Ater yawned.

Panthro repaired the engine wire, then completed his inspection of the remaining wires, quite aware that Ater was right behind him, watching everything in interest, and always silent. When he was finished, he wiped his hands on a rag, looking at the boy out of the corner of his eye. Not surprisingly, Ater was looking right back.

"So," Panthro said after a moment of utter silence, "do you actually say anything, or are you mute?"

Ater's ears twitched as he frowned. "What's 'mute'?" he asked in a piping voice.

"I take it that means you _can_ speak. 'Mute' means 'can't speak'."

"What's that?" He pointed to the Thunder Tank.

"That's the Thunder Tank, a fighting vehicle."

"Did you make it?"

"Yes."

Ater's eyes grew wide. "Could you show me?"

Panthro laughed. "It'll take years of patient studying to have the knowledge on how to build a Thunder Tank, and even then it would take a while to really build one."

"You teach me, then?"

"Well…." Before he could answer, the communicator he'd left on his worktable beeped loudly. "Hold that thought for a moment, kid," he told Ater as he walked over to the table and picked up the communicator. "What is it?" he asked.

It was Snarfer's voice that answered him. "Hey, uh, Panthro, you wouldn't happen to know how to fix an oven, would you, snarfer, snarfer?"

"I could probably figure it out. Why?"

"Well, uh, the one we've got has kind of blown up in Uncle Oz—I mean, Uncle Snarf's face, snarfer, and he says he needs it fixed right now. I tried but, uh… well, I only just managed to get away before it blew up in my face."

"An exploding _oven?"_

"Don't look at me, I didn't build the thing, snarfer, snarfer."

"Alright, I'll see what I can do." He put down the communicator and headed straight for the kitchen. It wasn't until he'd stepped into the kitchen area that he remembered Ater.

Not that it mattered. Snarf turned around and screeched, "What in the world?"

Panthro thought for a moment that Snarf had meant him, and then realized that he was looking instead at little Ater, who had apparently followed the panther fearlessly right into the Lair.

Snarf might've been horrified to realize that there was a Luna-tak half-breed in his kitchen, but Snarfer seemed to think it was funny. "I think you've got yourself a new friend, Panthro," he chuckled.

Ater was looking at the two snarfs intensely, as if he'd never seen such creatures before. "You've got big ears," he told Snarf.

Snarf seemed to decide being annoyed was an appropriate response to the youngster. "Oh, yeah? Have _you_ looked in a mirror lately, snarf, snarf?"

Ater giggled and grabbed his own ears with a grin.

"I don't think he'll be any trouble, Snarf," Panthro said, walking over to the smoking oven to take a look at it. "He'll probably ask some questions, but I think that's it."

"What's that?" Ater asked, pointing at an uncooked pie that sat on the counter, obviously waiting to go into the not-properly-working oven.

"That's a pie," Snarf replied. "Surely you've seen a pie before?"

Ater shook his head. "Nope."

"Oh, really, snarf, so what do you eat on that ship?"

"Biscuit ration thingies we bought before we came to this planet. They're so hard that Mama can bang her foot on top of one while wearing her metal boots, and it still won't break."

Snarf looked horrified, so Snarfer asked, "Snarfer, snarfer, if they're that hard, how do you eat them?"

"Aequo lets his soak in coffee for about twenty-four hours, Venenum stores hers in bleach, and Mama boils hers and mine in milk so that they're squishy and gross."

Panthro blinked. "Bleach?"

"That's what she says," Ater replied with the innocence of a child that has not yet learned what "sarcasm" is. Assuming the poisoner had been sarcastic and not dead serious.

Snarf seemed to get his wits back about him. "Snarf! Why don't you just go into the city and buy real food?"

"Are we allowed to leave the grounds?"

Snarf looked at Snarfer, who shrugged, then at Panthro, who seemed to be equally clueless. _"AACK! Panthro, fix that oven! I can't leave those morons to starve to death by eating soaked biscuits! For crying out loud, they've got a growing boy with them!"_

* * *

"And you don't have the vaguest idea whether or not they're trustworthy or not?" Lynx-O asked over the tele-screen. The screen was split in two, with Lynx-O on one side transmitting from the Tower of Omens, and Cheetara on the other side transmitting from the Cats' Lair on Third Earth. "Hmm…."

It had been over two weeks since the spies had arrived, and this time, instead of holding a meeting in the council chamber, the Thundercats were in the control room. This way, they were able to include Cheetara and Lynx-O in on the situation.

"Aequo is _not_ bad," Wily Kit and Wily Kat said firmly in unison.

"That's a first," Cheetara told them. "I was beginning to wonder if all mutants were evil."

"And what if they are?" Tygra growled.

Lynx-O frowned at the tiger's tone of voice, and Cheetara looked at him in surprise. "There are always exceptions to the rules, Tygra. Remember Grune? He used to be a Thundercat, and he was most certainly treacherous. By that token, isn't it possible for a mutant to be trustworthy?"

Tygra didn't reply to that, but he didn't look pleased. Lion-O had carefully made sure that he was on one side of the room and that Bengali was on the other. He couldn't exactly throw water buckets around in the control room, but he had Pumyra near Tygra and the Thunderkittens near Bengali, and all three of them were well supplied with sleeping pellets. Just in case.

"As for the half-breed," Cheetara continued, "we're no better than the mutants or Luna-taks if we judge against him just because his father was a Luna-tak. If nothing else, then remember that he is also half-Thunderian, and probably like any other child his age."

"What about Serica and Venenum?" Lion-O asked them. "We've got two radically different opinions on the first, and no one in the whole city has even heard of the latter."

It was Lynx-O that responded to the query. "I don't know about Serica, but the description you gave me of Venenum sounds familiar. 'Venenum', as you said Serica mentioned, is probably not her true name. If I could see her, I could probably tell you who she _really _is, except, well." He tapped his temple. "I could guess if I heard her voice, but I cannot guarantee accuracy, I'm afraid."

"There's also the possibility that she's the kind of person everyone believes to be dead," Cheetara added. "So they'd _think_ they'd never heard of her, because she'd been 'dead' for over fifteen years, possibly longer. That way, she can move about without anyone recognizing her; she'd merely be a random stranger that looked like someone they once knew."

"Not that they'd recognize her easily if she's keeping her face half-covered." Lynx-O's ears twitched. "The thought had occurred to me, too, but I must admit that I'd dismissed it. If the records of everyone on Thundera had survived, I'd suggest looking at those—"

"Except that no one thought to grab them before Thundera was destroyed," Panthro muttered. "Which hardly makes this any easier."

Cheetara shrugged. "For Serica, all I can suggest is that you come to your own conclusions about her. It doesn't seem to me that she's got any bad intentions, but if she's running the show, she could all too easily be the best actress."

Bengali bristled at that, but didn't say anything.

Pumyra sighed. "So that brings us back to base one: watch them while they watch us."

"I'm afraid so, Pumyra," Lynx-O said. "However, it would be well to remind you all that if these four truly do intend harm towards us, the Sword of Omens would let us know before they can implement their plans."

* * *

An hour before he had to take his own turn at night-watch, Tygra found himself walking through the silent halls of Cats' Lair, heading towards the large head. He and Pumyra had argued again, this time badly enough to send Tyri into a crying fit. Rather than face Pumyra while still angry and likely to say things he'd regret later, he'd instead told her he needed to cool off and had left the room.

_You're a coward, Tygra,_ he thought angrily. _You can't even face your own sister, and you're making everyone around you miserable at the same time. _He stepped out into the Cat Head's mouth, walked forward, and sat on the lip. By himself. It felt like he'd been by himself for years, even though he knew the other Thundercats were his friends.

He sat there for a long while, staring out into the night. At some point, he heard someone join him. He tensed up, ready for whatever argument this person would dare bring him, but when no retorts or questions came, he relaxed. After a while it occurred to him he should at least see who in the world was sharing the ledge with him, turned to look, and nearly jumped right out of his skin.

It was the wolf-man.

"How did you get up here?" Tygra queried, tensing up again.

The mutant didn't reply right away. First, he took his time to put a cigarette in his mouth and light it, and only after putting away the lighter did he even look back at Tygra. "You should relax some," he said calmly, blowing a puff of smoke out into the darkness. "Stress is bad for your back muscles."

"You didn't answer my question!"

"Relax, calm down, and ask politely. Then I will answer. Cigarette?"

"No."

Tygra had meant he wouldn't ask politely, but the mutant acted as if he was talking about the cigarette. "It's probably for the best, anyway. Smoking is bad for the lungs."

"So why are you smoking?"

"My father didn't want me to." The mutant sighed and looked melancholy. "Poor man."

They sat in silence for a long while, the mutant smoking his cigarette, and Tygra occasionally glancing over at him. Despite himself, Tygra relaxed. "What did you come here for?"

"I thought it would be nice to talk to a total stranger for a change."

"You came to talk about Serica."

"Not quite."

"I'm not talking to her."

"That's your choice, of course, and I cannot change your mind for you." He paused for a moment. "It's sad, really, when family members don't get along. All too often, your family is all you have."

"I have my friends."

"Yes. But what does Serica have? Only two brothers, and a son that wasn't even born of her own body; no friends."

"What about you and the poisoner?"

"Venenum is hardly easy to get along with, and I prefer men."

Tygra glanced at the mutant curiously. He couldn't tell if the wolf-man was being honest or not. Still, it made him feel a little guilty to think of Serica all alone, but he closed his eyes and said, "I won't talk to her."

"Yes, I believe you said that already. It's a little frightening how much alike you two are. She's being as equally stubborn about this as you are."

Tygra felt a smile twitch his lips. "Is she, now?" Somehow knowing that made him feel a little better.

"I never had siblings myself," the mutant continued. "My mother died when I was young, so it was just my father and me."

Tygra found himself listening curiously.

"We argued a lot, him and I. A lot of the time it came to blows, too. I think I've still got a few of the scars he left on me. But… he still loved me, and only wanted the best for me. And I could kill myself sometimes for not realizing it sooner. Almost managed once, too, until your Claudis came over and messed everything up."

"So why don't you tell your father now? It can't be that difficult to get to Plun-Darr."

"He died over forty years ago." The mutant blew out one last ring of smoke and crushed the stub of the cigarette against the white stone. "I hadn't seen him for ten years before that. I was eighteen, and I'd wanted something very badly for my birthday. I don't even remember what it was now, only that it was something I couldn't afford. My father knew this, and I'd expected he'd give me that whatever-it-was for my birthday… but he gave me a book instead. I was so angry I threw the book down and left, never looking back. I never spoke to him again, and I almost didn't even go to his funeral."

He reached into a pouch attached to his belt and pulled out a small, hardcover book. Not being good at Plun-Darrian languages, Tygra didn't have a clue what it was about, but it looked boring.

The mutant stared at the book and ran his fingers over the cover gently. "This is the book he gave me that night. It's funny, really, how the people that raise you work. All too often it seems that what they're trying to do is make you miserable. All too often… their real intentions are that they just want you to be happy… and you're too immature to see it or too proud to admit it." He opened the book and pulled out and envelope, and in the envelope was what even Tygra could see was a fair quantity of money. "In this envelope is the exact amount of money I needed to get the item I wanted. I didn't touch this book until just before the funeral, when I found it sitting on the mantelpiece of the fireplace. When I found the money… I realized that it wasn't my father that had been the heel. It was me… and I would never be able to tell him how sorry I was." He put the envelope back into the book and held it close, as if by holding it, he could hold his father once more.

"A father is different from an older sister," Tygra said quietly.

"Even when that older sister has found herself thrown unwillingly into the mold of being a mother?"

He didn't have an answer for that.

The mutant sighed and stood up, putting the book back into its pouch. "I had hoped to speak to more receptive ears than Serica's, but it seems that's not happening. So, I shall leave you to your thoughts, Thundercat Tygra." And with that, he left.

And Tygra was once again alone.

* * *

His shift almost half over, Tygra found himself wondering what it was he would be telling Pumyra when he got back to their room. She would most certainly be awake; she had this rather odd habit of staying awake after an argument until he'd returned, by which time they'd both be calm enough to just talk things through.

There was an odd noise from the tele-screen. He blinked and looked up just in time to see it wink out, then turn back on. Instead of the scanning system, however, Serica was on there. "Hey, I—" She blinked upon seeing Tygra, and made a face. "Oh, great."

He made a face right back at her, and turned the seat around so that he couldn't see her. Since the tele-screen made her seem larger than in real life, it had brought home the fact that she was no longer young. Her blue markings, which had once been darker than Bengali's, had faded, and there were small wrinkles around her mouth and eyes, unnoticeable unless one looked closely. _She's old,_ he thought, something inside of him turning cold from dread. _I didn't realize… she must be in her late sixties by now. _ The wolf-man's story about his father dying took on a new twist that Tygra didn't like.

"Knock that off, Tygra!" Serica said behind him in that bossy tone he'd grown to hate so much. "This is important!"

He growled a bit before turning the chair back towards her. "What is it?" he snapped.

She didn't look pleased at his tone of voice, but didn't comment on it. "There are mutants heading this way. Aequo and I managed to pick up on some of their transmissions. Commander Rataro is leading the group, and they plan to attack Cats' Lair and destroy the Thundercats."

"Destroy? Completely?" A small part of him believed her instantly, but he squashed it. _She's lying; she just wants to panic us._

"That's not their exact wording, but somehow I get the impression none of you would like long descriptions of how they plan to kill you."

_She's lying; she just wants to panic us,_ he kept telling himself. That small part of him started feeling guilty, but he ignored it. "Alright, I'll tell the others." _In maybe another two days or so._

Serica's eyes narrowed, as if she wasn't certain she should believe him or not; he felt a little pleased that for once he'd turned the tables on her. "Good. Aequo and I think that they're probably going to try attacking tomorrow morning, while the general public is still asleep. Make sure you tell the others."

"I will." _Just not tomorrow. Maybe later._

She gave him a piercing look. "Thank you, Tygra. I trust you." She nodded, and the screen once again blinked off, then back on, returning to the scanning program that had been interrupted.

Tygra felt sick.

* * *

He didn't say anything to the other Thundercats the next day. Some peevish part of him had decided that Serica was either over-reacting or lying. Probably the first; the Thundercats had dealt with mutants before, and they were almost ridiculously easy to beat. He was certain that the only way the Thundercats would ever be defeated by mutants would be if it were a mutant army. He went to bed the next night with mixed feelings. He kept hearing Serica saying she trusted him.

By the time he made up his mind to say something, it was too late. Rataro _had_ brought a mutant army, and the very first thing the mutants did was lay siege on the Cats' Lair early in the morning, an hour before dawn, while everyone was asleep.

The Thunderkittens were on duty at the time, and they must've only just barely had time to hit the alarm before the mutants broke in, because as soon as Tygra and the others left their bedrooms, they were surrounded. The struggle was brief and quite violent; in less than ten minutes, the Thundercats had lost their weapons, been shackled with Thundrainium chains and gagged.

As soon as that was finished, they were taken to the front hall. Panthro was limping; Bengali had been knocked out cold and was dragged along; Snarf and Snarfer were being carried like sacks of grain; Lion-O was being watched especially carefully so that he could not summon the Sword of Omens; and to keep Pumyra behaving, one of the jackalmen was holding little Tyri hostage.

Rataro stood in the center of the hall, his eyes narrowing as he saw the Thundercats being dragged in. "That was unusually fast," he commented. "Apparently, numbers _do_ help." Wily Kit and Wily Kat were already there, and Tygra was horrified to see that even they had been brutally treated; Wily Kit was bleeding from a head wound, and Wily Kat's arm was broken. Even if they hadn't been chained with Thundrainium, they were in no condition to get away.

Rataro walked slowly down the line of Thundercats, pausing for a bit longer in front of Lion-O. For some reason, neither one of them looked at each other with hatred; rather, they seemed to size each another up as one would a rival. Something must have pleased Rataro, because his grin widened a bit before he continued on. He stopped in front of Bengali and glared at the monkians holding him. "What happened here?"

"Um… it was an accident?" one of them mumbled, shrinking a bit beneath the rat mutant's gaze.

Tyri's wiggling and hushed sobs caught the commander's attention, and Tygra was inexplicably glad that he wasn't the one being glared at. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING WITH THAT CHILD?" he shouted at the jackalman holding her.

The jackalman's ears folded back. "Using her… as a hostage?" he squeaked. The knife he was holding to the baby's throat mysteriously disappeared.

Rataro stalked over to the jackal, took the baby away from him, and nodded to a large reptilian nearby. The jackalman had his rear end swatted by the reptilian's weapon so hard he actually flew forward a few feet before crashing to the floor.

"Morons," Rataro muttered, walking over to the Thunderkittens. He handed Tyri to Wily Kit before swerving around to glare at the mutants. "You remember my orders! The adults will be executed at midnight tonight starting with their leader, and the children will come back to Plun-Darr with me tomorrow morning. I want the city secure before then. Understand?"

If nothing else, Rataro had to be given two thumbs up for having his troops firmly under control. All the mutants saluted him briefly before running off to do separate chores; one ran off with all the Thundercats' weapons, another led the Thunderkittens and Tyri out the front door, and the rest prepared to take the rest of the Thundercats to a more secure area.

"Hold it," Rataro commanded. "Separate the leader; give him a room of his own with thirty guards, and do NOT remove that gag from his mouth, even if he looks like he's suffocating. I'm taking no chances with him. Chain the others to the wall so that they can barely touch the floor; it'll make it harder for them to escape, assuming they can do it at all with those Thundrainium chains."

* * *

Egbert and Ozwalt watched apprehensively as the mutants gradually took the whole city in hand. The two snarfs were hidden in a side alley, ducking behind garbage cans whenever any mutants got too close. Egbert shuddered before turning to his friend. "What do you think?" he whispered as another patrol of mutants walked by.

"Give the Thundercats time," Ozwalt replied faithfully. "I'm sure that they'll get rid of the mutants before tomorrow. They're probably already loose."

"I wish I had your optimism," the first snarf said.

Neither one of them noticed a pair of black and white hands slowly reach out of the alley towards their scruffs. At least, not until they heard the sound of popping knuckles and claws scraping together as the hands flexed briefly before snatching them. By the time either one thought to shout out, they were carried at a run into a nearby building, inside a closet, where they were deposited unceremoniously on the floor.

"What the—" Ozwalt blinked in surprise at the two Thunderian women that currently shared the closet with them, one a white tigress, the other possibly a golden cat. "You two aren't Thundercats, are you?"

"No, but we're allies to them," the tigress replied. "I heard the snarfs helped build the Lair, is it true?"

"Uh, yes. Why?"

She ignored him. "Alright, first, one of you needs to go out and reassure the rest of the Thunderians that the Thundercats will have this whole mess fixed before midnight tonight, and to have faith that everything will be back to normal."

Egbert must've unintentionally looked skeptical, because the tigress glanced once at him before turning to Ozwalt. "That'll be you. Get going."

"Yes, ma'am!" Ozwalt replied eagerly. "I knew I was right! I'll go right now!" The golden cat Thunderian opened the door for him to run out of and quickly closed it again behind him.

"How much do you know about the Cats' Lair?" the tigress asked Egbert. "This is important, so talk quickly."

"Off the top of my head, not much. It was a while ago that we snarfs built it; however, I'm quite certain I remember where the plans are stored."

"We need a floor plan of the whole Lair, then—"

"And a map of sa bentiration system," the golden cat added.

"The ventilation system?" The tigress looked at her strangely. "You can't fit in the—" Her eyes widened in shock. "Absolutely not!"

"We need aru sa help we can get," the golden cat replied firmly. "We hab no choice."

Egbert had no idea what they were talking about, but whatever it was upset the tigress quite a bit. Finally, she let out a growl of frustration and turned back to the snarf. "Fine. We need a floor plan of the whole Lair, and a map of the ventilation system."

* * *

"Now," Panthro said calmly, testing the strength of the chains that held him, "the truly annoying thing about this whole fiasco is that if we had been awake, we would've been able to handle it." He, Tygra, Bengali (still unconscious), and Pumyra had been dragged into the weapons room and the chains holding their hands had been nailed to the wall. They could barely touch the floor; Panthro's arms were beginning to ache, and the Thundrainium wasn't helping.

Bengali groaned; it was the first sign of coming around he'd given all day. "You alright?" Panthro asked him.

"I feel like my skull's been split in two, and now my arms are killing me," was the reply.

Snarf and Snarfer were somewhat lucky. They were chained up like dogs, but still unable to get loose. "Poor Lion-O," Snarf sniffed. "We can't even help him, and he's going to be the first one killed…." Snarfer patted him on the shoulder sympathetically.

Pumyra's expression was blank. "They're going to make the kittens and my baby slaves," she whimpered. She was drooping like a wilted flower, until her expression hardened. "Those goddamned spies were spies alright! They were working for the mutants all along! Damn it!" She would've stamped her foot if she could.

"They're not with the mutants," Tygra replied real quietly. The others slowly looked over at him. "They're on our side."

"Oh, yeah?" Snarfer snapped. "So why didn't they warn us? They're _spies,_ I'll bet you anything they've probably got the whole galaxy bugged!"

Tygra looked like he wanted to either disappear into nothingness or puke. "Serica told me, during my shift two nights ago."

They could've heard a fly land on the wall, it was so quiet. Not for long, though.

"Let me guess," Bengali growled angrily. "You decided not to believe her." His voice immediately rose in volume. "Damn you, Tygra! She _never _once lied to either of us, you know that, and you still didn't believe her?! And now we're all going to be killed and the kittens are going to be sold off at slaves because of you!"

"I'm sorry," Tygra whispered, staring at the floor instead of at any of them.

"Not as sorry as you're going to be, snarfer, snarfer," Snarfer told him, his ears twitching as he looked at the door. "Those aren't kitchen knives I hear them sharpening."

"I'm suddenly glad my hearing isn't as good as it used to be," Snarf shuddered.

Bengali's gasping was raspy, and it seemed as if he was having difficulty breathing at all. Panthro looked at him with concern. "Are you okay, Bengali?"

"Don't talk to me," was the harsh response.

"I think that answers your question, snarf." Snarf plopped himself helplessly on the floor. "It's almost dark out. If I wasn't so scared for Lion-O's safety, I'd be starving."

"Tygra," Pumyra said gently. "Don't beat yourself up over this; everyone makes mistakes."

"Oh, yes, and look where this one landed us!" Tygra exploded. "Our daughter's going to grow up as someone's pet, you're all going to get killed, and it's just because I—"

Panthro interrupted him. "Tygra, calm yourself. We've gotten out of similar situations before, in a variety of ways. And once we're out of this situation, I'm going to lock you in a room with your sister and neither one of you are allowed out until you've resolved whatever it is that's bothering you."

"Say, if the spies are on our side," Snarfer asked, "what in the world are they doing right now? I just heard a couple of the mutants out there saying that the ship out front is completely empty, as if were abandoned hastily. No sign of anyone."

"They wouldn't have abandoned us, would they?" Pumyra asked.

* * *

"Would you shut that child up?" the reptilian snapped at Wily Kit. "If you don't, I'll break her neck!"

Wily Kat snarled at the reptilian through the bars of the Thundrainium cage while Wily Kit tried to shush Tyri. "And what would Rataro say if you harmed his precious cargo, huh?" he asked in reply. "We might not allow slavery here, but that doesn't mean we don't know slaves are expensive! And an ex-Thundercat slave would easily be a small fortune! He most certainly wouldn't like it if you killed one of us!"

The reptilian snarled at him, but didn't seem to have a reply to that. "Just shut the brat up!" he said instead, turning his back towards them.

"I think she's hungry," Wily Kit whispered, "but we don't have anything to feed her. I'm really scared, Wily Kat. We're probably going to be separated once we get to Plun-Darr, and then we'll never see each other again!" She started to cry.

"Don't cry, Kit! Everything will be alright!" He glanced over at the mutants to make sure they weren't looking, and leaned in close so he could whisper, "Remember Aequo? And the others? They wouldn't let anything happen to us or the other Thundercats, right?"

"I guess…."

Almost as if by mentioning his name they had summoned him, Aequo walked through the gates towards the Cats' Lair, quite as if he owned the place. Behind him walked Venenum and Serica; the former was barely able to walk, she was tied up so much, but Serica only had a leash and collar on. Aequo held the end of the leash and Venenum's rope in one hand, and in the other he carried Serica's huge portfolio over his shoulder.

"You, there," one of the reptilians snapped. "What are you doing?"

Aequo stopped and somehow managed to jerk only the rope, causing Venenum to trip and fall on the ground. "I want permission to kill this one," the wolf-man said with a shrug. "Ugly little bitch tried to kill me, if you can believe it. And as for the other... well, she's quite friendly, and I thought that Commander Rataro would like to try selling her off."

"Friendly, eh?" the reptilian asked lewdly. He and the other three guards, two monkians and a jackalman, stepped forward to get a better look (or cop a feel) at Serica.

And she just wiggled her butt, winked, and all around acted quite shamelessly. "Ooh," she purred to the reptilian. "You look so... big."

Wily Kit and Wily Kat looked at each other in horror. "I think I'm going to be sick," the latter whispered while making a face.

The four mutants were quite enthralled with the friendly Serica, tickling her under her chin, sniffing her hair, and one of them even being so bold as to grab a breast and squeeze it. She only giggled girlishly and slapped their hands ever so lightly. "She's _really _friendly," the jackalman said appreciatively, looking her up and down with a grin. "Maybe we should... uh, 'train' her a bit, so that Rataro can fetch a real high price for her on Plun-Darr."

As a matter of fact, the mutants were paying so much attention to Serica, they completely forgot about Venenum. The poisoner somehow managed to slip out of the ropes that held her, and whipped out a vial, popping the cork. The group was immediately engulfed in a puff of hot pink smoke. When it cleared, only Aequo, Serica, and Venenum were still standing, the former only barely managing to do so. The rest of the mutants had fallen to the ground, and were sleeping peacefully.

Quick as a wink, Venenum pulled out another vial and handed it to Aequo. "Drink zat before it gets you, too," she told him.

He took a swallow of the liquid, something that was dark yellow, and gagged. "Oh, yuck!" he coughed, handing her back the empty vial. "That's disgusting! Can't you make some of those antidotes taste better?"

"Quit complaining and break open the cage," Serica told him, stepping delicately over the mutants. She removed the collar from her neck. "That's Thundrainium; Venenum and I can't go anywhere near it."

Giving Venenum a dirty look as he stood up, Aequo strode quickly to the cage, grabbed two of the bars, and wrenched them right out of the sockets. "Out, cubs, before it affects you too much!"

Wily Kit and Wily Kat scrambled out as fast as they could. Venenum grabbed Wily Kat, and before he knew it, took his broken arm and reset the bone. He screeched in pain; she ignored him and tightly bound it with bandages that she had pulled out of Serica's portfolio. "Do not do anysing to jar zat arm, you wiru break it again," she told him when she'd finished. Serica and Aequo disappeared inside the Lair. "Your Pumyra wiru hab to put a proper cast on it rater."

"It hurts so much right now I won't dare," he whimpered, trying not to cry.

"What was that stuff?" Wily Kit asked Venenum while Tyri sniffed unhappily. "It didn't affect you and Serica at all!"

"It is my own personaru mix," she said. Though it was hard to tell with the scarf over her face, she seemed to be smiling. "I figured if Sundranium affected just Sunderians, sen I courud make somesing zat affected just mutants. It puts zem into a deep sreep; zey wiru not wake up for hours." She looked at the cut on Wily Kit's head and tsked. "Pasetic." She pulled out more bandages and quickly covered the wound. Tyri, still crying, didn't seem to care about anything that was happening. "Now zat you two hab been taken care of, run into our spaceship and hide. Ater shourud be joining you soon; he wiru show you where sa smuggring stores are. And somesing for sa baby, so she wiru not cry anymore."

"Um… okay, I think I understood that…."

"But what about the other Thundercats?" Wily Kat asked.

Venenum winked at him. "Reabe zat to us spies."

* * *

"This is unbelievably boring," Panthro sighed. "Is it midnight yet?"

"Tell me you're joking!" Snarf replied. "By the time midnight comes, we'll be dragged to whatever block they've prepared and we'll have our heads separated from our shoulders!"

"Exactly. Something to look forward to. That's just how bored I am."

"This is all my fault," Tygra muttered.

"Not again," Bengali snarled. "Will you shut up about that already, Tygra? I'm getting sick of it. It's done and over with, now quit moping."

"Hush," Snarfer told them, looking intent.

They didn't hear him. "Oh. Stop moping, should I? Just like you should stop complaining every time you get night watch?"

"Well at least I know better than to distrust my own sister because of a stupid argument over twenty years ago!"

"That's because I'm not idiotic enough to run headlong into an unknown situation and—"

"I SAID SHUT UP!" Snarfer shouted. He glared at them as they stared at him in surprise. "We can argue later! I'm trying to hear something." He turned back to the wall and stared again, his ears twitching occasionally. "Small," he said. "And something that _clangs...?"_

"What is it, nephew?" Snarf asked him.

"I don't know yet. I'd say it was another snarf, but it doesn't sound right, and there's no tail. Snarfer, snarfer, Lynx-O would know what it is... What the—?" He pointed to the air vent near the ceiling. "What's that?"

Something shaped like a candy cane was poking through one of the openings. It was gray, and when the end clipped onto the screw holding one corner of the vent to the wall, there was a short buzzing noise, and the screw fell to the floor.

"I don't think it's a snarf," Pumyra whispered.

Even as they watched, the strange instrument removed the other three screws and disappeared back behind the vent. Something or someone grabbed the vent from inside the air duct, maneuvered it a bit, and pulled it in. Then there was silence.

"I think it's going away," Snarfer told them, his ears twitching again.

Pumyra narrowed her eyes. "Hmm…. Whatever it is, it has strange habits."

"Wait, it's coming back. Backwards this time." Snarfer frowned. "And it's pushing something before it."

Without warning, there was an audible kick, and a backpack flew out of the vent. When it landed on the floor, the top opened and, of all things, Panthro's nun-chucks fell out; the Sword of Omen's hilt was clearly visible; considering the bulge still inside the back, the other weapons were probably in there, too. And crawling out of the vent, feet first—

"Ater!" Panthro gasped. "What are you—"

Upon landing on the floor, the half-breed whipped around and put his finger to his lips; Panthro took the hint.

Ater's ears twitched once or twice, and then he ran to the door and locked it. He reached into one of the large pockets on his trouser leg, and pulled out a pair of metal shears. He ran over to Panthro and prepared to cut through the chain near his ankle's shackle.

"No, Ater," Panthro said quickly and quietly. "You have to get them off completely. The Thundrainium metal makes us weak."

Ater looked at him, and nodded. He changed his grip from the chain to the metal ring around Panthro's ankle, wiggled the shears into place, and snapped right through it. He blinked in surprise, frowned in concentration, and gripped either side of where he'd made the cut, as if he were going to try pulling it apart.

Bengali growled. "Ater, you can't! The Thundrainium will make you too weak!"

The collar pulled apart in Ater's small hands. "What a weak metal," the boy said with disgust.

The Thundercats stared at him; it was Snarfer that figured it out. "Hey, that's right! You're only _half-_Thunderian, snarfer, snarfer! Your Luna-tak blood probably protects you from the effect of Thundrainium!"

"Good thing it was me, then," Ater replied, picking up the shears from where he'd put them. "Venenum wouldn't have been able to help you."

* * *

Lion-O was tired. He didn't know if it was the effect of the Thundrainium, or if it was because of the horrid position the mutants had insisted on putting him in. He was on his knees, with his arms tied together from elbow to wrist, and a collar attached to the wall on a short chain that prevented him from moving very much. Everything was of Thundrainium, and the gag was so tight it felt like it was cutting into the corners of his mouth.

_I guess this will be the turning point as to whether or not I believe everything Serica told me_, he thought to himself, only somewhat aware of the reptilian that was actually in the room with him. His other twenty-nine guards were outside the door in the hall, milling about and just being noisy. _If they come, I will believe them. If they do not... well, I'll know they were lying, and I'll find some way of getting out of this mess._

"What're you doing here?" the reptilian asked.

Lion-O was about to reply that he was the captive, but someone else replied instead. "Commander Rataro is still a little nervous," a familiar voice replied. Lion-O turned his head and couldn't quite comprehend that Aequo had just walked right into the room, as if he belonged here, closing the door behind him. "Personally, I don't see why such a cub would be as much trouble as the commander seems to think he is."

The reptilian snorted. "Neither do I." He looked out the window and muttered, "I hate wolf-men…."

While the reptilian's back was turned, Aequo looked straight at Lion-O. Then he tilted his head towards the reptilian, silently ran his finger across his neck as if slitting his throat, and raised an eyebrow.

It took Lion-O a moment to realize what the wolf-man was asking. He shook his head violently.

Aequo looked relieved and, without further ado, smashed his fist down on top of the reptilian's head, knocking him out cold. "That should keep him out for a couple of hours," the wolf-man said, double-checking to make sure he hadn't killed the mutant. "He's going to wake up with one nasty headache, though." He came over and quickly untied the gag around Lion-O's mouth, then started snapping the chains holding the young Lord in place. "I'm glad you didn't want me to kill him; Claudis and Jaga promised me that they'd never make me kill my own countrymen, but I wasn't sure if you would be the same."

Lion-O stood up after the last chain was broken and got away from the Thundrainium. "If my father and Jaga would not ask it of you," he said, looking at Aequo, "then neither shall I."

Aequo looked grateful, and bowed slightly. "Thank you, Lord Lion-O. I may be on your side for numerous reasons… but they're still my people." He made a face at the unconscious reptilian. "Even if they don't feel the same towards me." He unsheathed his sword, an enormous black blade with a nasty jagged look, and handed it to Lion-O, hilt first. "I don't have the Sword of Omens with me, so you'll have to use this for the moment. If Ater managed to get your Sword, like he said he could, then it should be with the other Thundercats. When we get in sight of them, you can call it to you."

Lion-O took the blade hesitantly, afraid he wouldn't be able to hold such a large sword, and was surprised at how light it was. "How sharp is this?" he asked.

"Very. I would strongly suggest using the flat of the blade, otherwise anyone you hit with it will pass by you with missing limbs." Before he opened the door, he looked over his shoulder at the young lord. "A little bird told me that you know what my comrades and I were doing for the past fifteen years, but she said you didn't know whether or not to believe us."

"And she would be right. Until tonight, I wasn't certain whether or not I could believe you. I'm… I'm still not, but when we meet Rataro… then I'll know for sure."

Aequo grinned. "Good. I wasn't certain whether or not you had much room for thought in your head when you were a cub, but I can see you've matured greatly since then."

* * *

Pumyra had her ear up against the door. "Ater, how many guards are outside the door? Do you know?"

The boy shook his head. "No. But Mama said to wait here until she and Venenum got rid of them. Then we're all going to head to where Lion-O's being kept so we can give him the Sword of Omens."

"That's right, he's got thirty guards keeping an eye on him," Panthro thought out loud. "How're we going to get him?"

"Aequo's going to let him loose."

"How?" Snarf was, as usual in times of crisis, half-hysterical. "Panthro just said Lion-O's got thirty guards on him!"

Ater looked at Snarf as if he were a moron. "He's a mutant. _Duh."_

"He is, isn't he?" Bengali muttered. "He'd literally be able to walk right in, claiming he was on orders from this Rataro, and no one would be the wiser."

Ater nodded emphatically.

"So how will we know when your mother and the poisoner get here?" Tygra asked.

He needn't have bothered. Almost as soon as the last word had left his mouth, there were shout of surprise from the mutants outside the door, immediately followed by sounds of a large group of mutants getting swatted from one side of the room to the other. When two or possibly three mutants crashed into the door, actually tearing it away from the wall, the Thundercats jumped away and stared in surprise at the nasty pink smoke that floated into the room from the hall.

"Took you long enough, Venom," Serica's voice said. A moment later she appeared from the smoke, raising an eyebrow at them all. Her portfolio was being held over her shoulder again, though from the blood splatters and scratch marks on it, it was all too possible she'd been using it as a bludgeon. "Well, you all going to keep standing there and staring, or are we going to get Lion-O?"

"What about the kittens?" Pumyra asked.

"Taken care of. We got them loose, patched them up a bit, and sent them to hide in the ship. Ater, give someone else the Sword, and get to the ship yourself. I want you all in the smuggling compartments within five minutes."

"But Mama—"

"_NOW,_ ATER! Get moving!"

Ater sighed, gave the Sword of Omens and Claw Shield to Snarf, and leapt up to catch the rim of the air vent. Another moment, and he'd scrambled inside and disappeared.

Venenum appeared from the smoke as well. "We need to moob _now,_ Sundercats. I hab no more gas to put the mutants to sreep, so we're going to hab to fight sem to get to Rion-O."

Panthro looked at her in surprise. "You do speak English… badly."

She glared at him, and pointed towards the hall. _"Baka! Isoide!"_

* * *

How they managed to get Lion-O and Aequo out of that mess of mutants, Tygra never knew. The fighting was just as vicious as before; at one point, a mutant managed to shove a knife into Tygra's shoulder. He'd yelped and collapsed to the floor. The blade must've hit a nerve or something, because the pain just shot right down through his whole body, making it almost impossible to move.

"You're finished, Thundercat!" the mutant had said happily. "You'd have been better off waiting to be executed!" He'd raised his axe while Tygra struggled to pull out the dagger.

The mutant _should_ have been on the lookout for any potential rescuers. As a result, he didn't see the huge portfolio that smashed into him broad side, sweeping him off his feet and knocking him into a huge group of reptilians nearby. Without pausing for thought, Serica reached out, grabbed the dagger's hilt, and wrenched it out of Tygra's shoulder for him. And she didn't leave his side, using her portfolio like a baseball bat or club on any mutant that got too close, until he was able to stand up and continue fighting.

"Serica, I—"

"Not now, later!"

One moment, it seemed they were fighting mutants left and right, with no hope of managing to save their young lord or even themselves. The next, there was a yelp from Snarf, the Sword of Omens flew through the air, and the mutants started scattering left and right, with Lion-O and a rather vicious-looking Aequo at his side running between them.

"Where to, Lion-O?" Panthro asked, taking a breather, though he looked as if he wanted to chase mutants for the rest of the night.

"Aequo told me Rataro is in the meeting room," the young lord replied. "We're going there."

"And then?" Serica asked with a mischievous grin.

He gave her a funny look. "We'll see when we get there."

They ran through the halls as fast as they could, occasionally having to stop and beat the crap out of a group of mutants that got in their way. As a result, fast as they were, it took them ten minutes to get to the meeting room.

Rataro was sitting in the chair farthest from the door, leaning back in it, and for all the world looking as patient as a saint. "Five minutes to midnight," he said calmly as the Thundercats slammed the door behind them. He grinned at Lion-O. "You enjoy cutting things close, boy."

"Not by preference," Lion-O replied just as calmly. The other Thundercats looked at him oddly.

"If you insist." Rataro stood up with dignity, and came fearlessly towards the young lord. "I shall now call a retreat and return to Plun-Darr."

"What?" Snarf asked. "That's it? No final showdown?"

Rataro snorted. "I did not come here for any 'showdowns'. I have more class than that." He frowned and actually looked at the other Thundercats. "You do know why, right?" When no one answered, he looked back at Lion-O curiously. "They don't know?"

Lion-O's expression was somewhat stern. "I'm the only one that does. The others… had a difficult time accepting the spies for who and what they were."

"Know what?" Pumyra asked slowly.

It was Lion-O who replied. "Why the spies have been on Plun-Darr for the past fifteen years." He gave them all a look that clearly told them not to panic. "It'll be explained to you in a moment."

Rataro laughed. "I'll bet I can figure out why no one knows but you! I wouldn't want to be anywhere near Serica and Tygra if they took it into their heads to fight again!"

"How do you know about that?" Tygra asked indignantly.

"Your sister talks in her sleep." Rataro saluted them. "Now, if you will excuse me, I must retrieve my army and leave New Thundera." With that, he left the room, closing the door behind him. A second later, they heard him shouting orders in a loud voice.

"How does he know Serica talks in her sleep?" Bengali asked no one in particular. He suddenly looked horrified and glanced at her with a questioning look.

"Ask me no questions, I'll tell you no lies," she replied in a mischievous tone.

"You _are _going to explain everything, Lion-O, right, snarf, snarf?" Snarf asked. The rest of the Thundercats were still trying to figure out what the hell was going on.

Lion-O nodded to Serica, who opened her portfolio and took out a yellowed paper that she handed to the young lord. It looked like a contract. "The spies left Thundera over fifteen years ago with the intention of convincing the King of Plun-Darr and his right hand man, Commander Rataro, to sign a treaty with us to end all this fighting," Lion-O told them. "On orders from both Jaga and my father." He held out the paper and let Panthro take it. "That's not the whole of it; apparently, there's another bit of this whole thing that no one's allowed to know about unless the King of Plun-Darr agrees to it. I would've pressed, but Jaga himself appeared to me and told me it would do none of us any good to know it now, especially since it's not yet been agreed to."

Panthro studied the paper quite carefully. "Signed by Jaga, Claudis, King Veterator, and Commander Rataro." He stared at it in surprise. "I don't know about the King or Rataro, but I can certainly tell that Jaga and Claudis' signatures have not been forged onto this document." He looked at Aequo, then Serica, and finally Venenum. "I don't believe it."

"Beriebe it," Venenum said with annoyance. "Sa King and Rataro are bery stubborn. We spent sa rast fifteen years trying to conbince zem to sign zat fucking treaty."

"And it didn't help that Rataro took it into his head to run off a couple times," Aequo added. "He kept going to some backwater place called Third Earth; the second time his Rat Star was trashed and he had to beg to get transportation back to Plun-Darr." Although he sounded as if he didn't know what Rataro had been up to, the twinkle in his eyes said otherwise. "I do believe he was somewhat impressed with whatever it was he found. He was a lot more willing to sign the treaty after the second trip."

There was a moment of stunned silence before Snarf shouted, "YOU'RE ALL INSANE!"

Venenum looked insulted. "I hab _neber _in my rife craimed to be 'sane'."

"Well, I can understand why Aequo would want a treaty," Pumyra said, "but what about the rest of you?"

"None of your business!"

"Ater's mother had her reasons, I'm sure," Aequo told Pumyra, "but whatever they were, she kept them to herself and took them to the grave with her."

Serica took a little longer to answer than her comrades. "The Thundercats and mutants fight quite often," she said slowly. "There are always casualties on either side. Asshole though he might be at times, Tygra is still my brother and I don't want him to end up dead." She wasn't looking at any of them; rather, she seemed to be studying something in the far upper corner of the room.

Which, as far as Tygra was concerned, was a good thing. If she looked at him now, he wasn't sure how well he'd be able to take it. Unconsciously, he reached up and placed a hand over the wound in his shoulder. _She did that… for me?_

_All this time… was she just trying in her own way to protect me?_

_**("All too often… their real intentions are that they just want to protect you so you can be happy… and you're too immature to see it or too proud to admit it.")**_

_No. That can't be it._ He felt ill, and was glad when the others continued the discussion around him. He wasn't certain he'd be able to say anything at the moment without doing something embarrassing… like bursting into tears.

"How in the world did you hide Thunderians on Plun-Darr?" Panthro asked. "That can't be an easy task."

"The best possible place," Aequo replied. "Right out in the open. It was three Thunderians at first, all of them women; it was Serica's idea that I pretend to be their owner, and the three of them performed whatever tasks they wanted as my pets in order to earn money. I think the most popular was the dancing group; Rataro and the king could actually visit that one without looking suspicious. Then our thief went and got herself pregnant with Ater and died in childbirth; the boy's father helped us for as long as he could, but as I'm sure you've heard, Luna-taks and mutants don't get along too well. I'm sure you can figure out what happened to him."

"Cheetara's going to have a litter of puppies when she hears about this," Pumyra chuckled. "And I'm rather looking forward to seeing Lynx-O's face when he finds out."

"What about that last bit that we're not supposed to know about?" Snarfer asked. _"Why_ aren't we supposed to know about it?"

"First, King Veterator has yet to agree to it," Serica replied. "Second, it was at Rataro's request. When you find out what it is—and I've no doubt you will if what Rataro said is true—then I'm sure you'll be able to guess why."

* * *

Thankfully, the mutants hadn't occupied the city long enough to cause any serious damage, so the repairs were quick and easy. Before long, it was as if the mutants had never been there and it had been nothing more than a dream or nightmare.

Ironically, only the prostitutes were upset about the retreat. Apparently, the mutants had been very good customers… in more ways than one.

This, of course, left the Thundercats free to tell Cheetara and Lynx-O about the mission the spies had been sent on. Cheetara, like Snarf, questioned the sanity of the spies, and then insisted on meeting them. Lynx-O had burst out laughing so hard that it took him several minutes to compose himself; even then he kept chuckling every few moments or so.

Which left only one more loose thread, one that Tygra intended to leave alone. Unfortunately, Panthro and Bengali had different ideas on the matter.

"Look, isn't enough that we've come to some sort of compromise?" Tygra pleaded as he tried to get away. Bengali and Panthro just tightened their grips on his arms and continued dragging him down the hall. "I'll stay out of her face, and she'll stay out of mine!"

"I am _not_ going through another fiasco like the last one!" Panthro replied. "I told you I was going to lock you in a room with her until you resolved this, and I meant it!"

"Not to mention I'm sick of you two practically trying to commit homicide every time you look at each other," Bengali added. Perhaps a little too roughly, they kicked open the door of one of the spare rooms and threw Tygra in. "Oh, yeah, and I'll be borrowing this for a while." Bengali waved the bolo whip a bit. "I wouldn't want you trying anything drastic." Before Tygra could jump to his feet, they slammed the door in his face, and a lock clicked into place on the other side.

"Let me out of here!" Tygra shouted. "Please! I don't want to talk to her! I'm—I'm—" _I'm utterly terrified._

When it appeared that no one was going to open the door, he sighed unhappily and walked into the center of the room. "Well," he told the empty air, "it seems I have no choice in this matter. She'll probably think I'm a coward."

However, a moment later he found out he wasn't the only reluctant one. It seemed that Panthro and Bengali had gotten Aequo in on their plan, and that the mutant was literally carrying a kicking and screaming Serica down the hall. "You goddamned traitor!" she screeched. "How dare you do this to me? What gives you the right to treat me like this? I won't talk to him! I won't! I won't!"

The door opened again, but before Tygra could dash out, Aequo threw Serica at him. This left Tygra with the difficult decision of letting his sister smash into the floor or grabbing her before she hit the floor; he opted for the latter without thinking, but it caused him to miss his opportunity to escape. The door was once again closed and locked. "And we're not letting either of you out until tomorrow morning!" Panthro shouted from the other side. "So I suggest you fix whatever's wrong! Otherwise we'll just lock you in there again."

Serica wretched herself from Tygra and threw herself at the door. "LET ME OUT! LET ME OUT!" After a moment of banging on the door with her fists, she froze, then slowly looked over her shoulder at Tygra.

He wasn't entirely certain laughing was appropriate, so he didn't. "I can see I'm not the only reluctant one," he said instead.

They just stood there for what seemed like hours, staring at one another. . Tygra was the one who moved first; he turned his back on her and walked to the window, leaning his arms against the sill.

Another minute or two passed in silence before Serica said, "This is ridiculous. What's your problem, Tygra?"

"My problem?" He whipped around to glare at her. _"My_ problem?"

"Yes. _Your _problem. I can't so much as walk into a room without you throwing something at me or ignoring me. All right then, what've I done? Are you still upset because I hit you once? I'd remind you that you were the one that threw me into the bookcase, but you've probably conveniently forgotten that."

He tried to say something, but he could seem to speak. He shook his head.

"Is it because you felt that I was trying to replace Mother? Is that it? Do you think that's what I tried to do?"

He shook his head again. He was getting angry again, though he couldn't have said whom he was getting angry with: her, or himself.

"Is it because you felt that Bengali was getting all the attention? For crying out loud, Tygra, he was only two days old when Mother died; what did you expect me to do? Ignore him and hope he learned to take care of himself?"

"That's not it," he muttered.

"What, then? What have I done? I cooked and cleaned so that you wouldn't have to! I dropped out of school to get a part-time job so I could help Father support us and take care of Bengali! I stayed home most of the time so that if you needed me, I'd be there for you! I went through hell and high water for you, even though you fought me every step of the way!"

"_You didn't!"_ he finally shouted at her. _"You never gave me what I needed! You were never there! Half the time I had to take care of my own cuts and bruises because you were too busy! And the first chance you got, you gave me away without a fight!"_

"_Without a fight?"_ she screeched back. "Is _that _what you think? I tore apart Claudis' office when he and Jaga told me they wanted to take you away! They had to call in the other Thundercats to restrain me! Do you think I liked having it thrown in my face that I had no control over you, by the Lord of the Thundercats no less? And unless I had control over you, I couldn't teach you to control yourself! When your mental powers came into bloom, I wouldn't have been able to do anything to keep you from destroying yourself! Jaga practically handed me two outcomes: either keep you and watch helplessly as your mind tore itself to shreds, or give you up so that Jaga himself could teach you the control you needed to _stay sane!"_

He stared at her in shock.

She was openly weeping now. "What else could I do? Claudis was at least kind enough to grant me two weeks grace to make my decision, and I tried, I seriously tried, to make you understand what the situation was, but damn it all, you just wouldn't listen! When my two weeks were up, I took Bengali to the Lair with me and informed Jaga that if he wanted you, then he'd have to explain to the baby of the family why his older brother had been taken away! You think I enjoyed watching Bengali cry like that? And when I finally handed you over to Jaga, it was all I could do to keep my head so that I could get home without causing a scene!"

All the fight had drained out of him. "Why didn't you tell me any of that?" he asked quietly.

"I tried, _but you wouldn't listen!"_ She backed up against the wall and sunk to the floor. "I never wanted to be your surrogate mother," she whispered, ignoring the tears that ran down her face. "I never got anything I wanted, the circumstances wouldn't let me…."

_**("When you are older, and more able to appreciate how much your sister has given up for you, then you will see them again.")**_

Tygra slowly walked over to Serica and knelt beside her. "I'm sorry, Serica," he said quietly. "I kept telling myself over the years that I knew what you were going through… but I didn't. Maybe in some way, that was some form of arrogance I managed to cultivate. I should've resolved this whole fight when I realized how bad it had gotten."

She shook her head slightly and wiped the tears from her face. "It was partially my fault. I probably should have explained things better to you when I had my chance. And I'm sure it didn't help to keep running away rather than facing you." She looked at him. "I'll forgive you if you forgive me."

He sat beside her. "That works for me. But you've got to promise you'll never hit me again."

"I promise I won't hit you again unless you richly deserve it."

He smiled slightly. "And I promise I won't throw you into any more bookcases. And next time you try to tell me something… I promise I'll listen."

She smiled back. "And I'll listen to you when you've got something to tell me."

Awkwardly, he gave her a hug, and was somewhat relieved when she returned it without hesitation. After a moment, they let go of each other again and just sat there. "I still hate you."

"Yeah, well, the feeling's mutual."

"So now what?" he asked.

"Well, we're stuck in here until morning," she replied. "So I guess we just sit here until then."

"You mind if I ask you a question?"

"Only if I can't answer it."

"I think you can, I just don't know if you will."

She looked at him cautiously. "What?"

He hesitated before looking at her anxiously and asking, "You didn't _really_ sleep with Rataro, did you?"

* * *

**End of Part One.**

And now, for the long awaited RANDOM NOTES!

Herculus baby: A Thundercat story that never appeared in the TV series, it was in the Thundercat comics from the 1980s, #21 to be exact (#55 and #56 in the British comics). It was basically a Snarf solo story where he got stuck with an invincible super-strong baby, only to have the mutants try to kidnap the baby… and well, it was certainly one of those stories that made the mutants look like a bunch of morons….

Serica: Latin word for "silk." I don't know why I chose silk, exactly; I just wanted something different from the over-used "Siberia" and similar names.

Venenum: Latin word for "poison." Definitely one of my stranger ideas. A Thunderian with a Japanese accent and a Latin name! There's a good one!

"Good shing….": Sorry about that. That whole monologue was me playing with a thick written Japanese accent, and it's so bad I simplified her speaking later in the story for literacy purposes. She basically said, "Good thing, too. Otherwise, the interloper in question would be in big trouble…."

"Yorrin desuka? Iindesuyo….": Japanese translation – "Four people? That's good…." The sentence structure (called the ndesu form) indicates surprise.

"Doushite iya na no?": Japanese translation – "Why not?"

Aequo Animo: Literal Latin translation – "with patience." It seemed to fit his character.

Ater: Latin word for "black." Ironically, so is the Latin word "niger;" I almost used that, then decided not to on account of its similarity to another not-quite-so-popular word. Gee, I wonder where it derived from….

Immunity: Yes, immunity to poisons can be built up. You start with a VERY small amount of poison every day, hopefully only just enough to make you sick but not kill you, and keep at it until it no longer bothers you. Then you raise the amount of poison by a little bit, and continue the process. However, this CANNOT be done will all poisons; some, like arsenic, will stay in your system—specifically, your body fat—and the moment you stop eating the poison, all the poison that's still in your body fat will hone in on you and kill you. It's more complicated than that, but that's the basic idea.

Aequo's story: This is a little similar to a story that I heard when I was younger. It affected me so much then, that I still remember it quite clearly almost ten years later.

"Baka! Isoide!": Japanese translation – "Idiot! Get a move on!"

"She talks in her sleep.": _Indiana Jones_ anyone? The really funny thing is that I didn't even realize where this idea came from until I watched _Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade_ with my family earlier! Talk about something that sticks in the mind!

Tygra and Serica's fights: Derived from fights my own mother and I have had, one or two of them resulting in her trying to strangle me, and me hitting her so hard she got a black eye. No, it's not child abuse. I was eighteen at the time, and HARDLY a child. I can't honestly say I didn't deserve it, either, just like I'm still convinced my mother deserved that black eye. Besides, some of the fights I've gotten into with my sisters recently make _that _fight look like a joyride.

**And now, next time on Spies and Assassins:**

Well, actually I'm not completely sure what will happen. Only that Cheetara has quite an interesting experience… arranged by, of all things, the Sword of Omens!


	3. Part Two: Dream World

Please forgive the extreme tardiness of this installment, as I had meant to finish writing and post this way over a year ago. However, my father died suddenly and quite unexpectedly May of last year, which threw everyone in the family off course for a while. I've had a very difficult time trying to write since then, and with the passing of the one year anniversary of his death, I've only just gotten back into the swing of things and rediscovered my sense of humor.

Oh, and forgive my eccentric request: if you post a comment or similar to this chapter, please don't reveal any spoilers!

Again, random notes at the end of Part Two for those who are curious, and, of course, another preview!

Enjoy!

11/5/2008

* * *

**Part Two: The Dream World**

The Sword of Omens sat in the center of the Sword Chamber. Upon looking at it, most of the Thundercats would've said that the Eye of Thundera embedded in the hilt was asleep. But though the Eye was sometimes quiet, it never slept. It was always watching, always listening.

Always thinking.

Perhaps if it had occurred to the Thundercats that this was so, they would've—out of curiosity—tried to find ways to see what it was thinking. Surely it made sense that such an omnipotent stone was also omniscient; how else would it know when they were in trouble, or when danger came close? They would've tried to read it's thoughts, but they would've failed. The ideas and memories of an ancient jewel are so very different from those of flesh and blood creatures.

Assuming they had succeeded, though, they would've stumbled across something like this:

_She is infatuated with him. That is not good; he is destined for another, one who will see him as an equal at all times, never as a child as she still does. However, I will not make the same mistake I made with Claudis; I will not scar her heart as I unintentionally did that last time. I wonder what should I do…._

So, it sat there, and thought.

* * *

"Cheetara, you're not watching!"

Cheetara blinked in surprise, shook her head a bit, and smiled slightly at Wily Kit. "I'm sorry; I just… spaced out for a moment." To herself she thought, _My sixth sense is trying to tell me something, but it's not even sure what it is yet. It doesn't feel like danger, so I won't worry the others, not until I'm a little more certain._ "Could you show me again?"

Wily Kit looked a little suspicious, but nonetheless did so, moving her hands in intricate patterns. They were in the control room with Aequo Animo, the wolf-man Mutant that was on their side (for reasons he did not care to explain). Lynx-O was there, too, with his portable Braille board hooked up to the control panel; he'd volunteered for the first night watch, and the others were keeping him company.

Cheetara watched Wily Kit's hands closely for a moment. "You're asking me if I've had—" She frowned and leveled a glare at Wily Kit, who starting laughing hysterically. "I am _not _answering that."

"These are supposed to be lessons in sign language, child," Aequo the wolf Mutant told Wily Kit, his tail lashing back and forth, "not interrogations on someone's personal information. Behave yourself."

"Hey, you're a spy!" Wily Kit grinned at him. "Do you know the answer?"

"Of course I do, but as it's not a matter of life or death, I see no reason to tell you. Now, _behave."_

Still giggling, Wily Kit once again weaved her hands back and forth, this time in a different pattern. Cheetara once again watched closely. "You're asking me what my plans for tonight are." Now this is where she came across problems. While she had absolutely no problem reading sign language, she couldn't always remember how to make the hand symbols, and she tended to have a horrid inability to keep them straight. Still, she concentrated carefully, and made the hand symbols for what she wanted to say. She wasn't as fast as Wily Kit, but thankfully she only needed to remember five letters.

Wily Kit read Cheetara's hands and frowned. "Creep?"

While Aequo tried desperately to smother his laughing, Cheetara stared at her hands, wondering what she'd done wrong. "No, I wanted to say 'sleep'…."

Lynx-O placed a hand on her shoulder. "Cheetara, these are the symbols for 's' and 'l'." His other hand moved to show her what they were.

Cheetara threw her hands up in the air. _"Ack!_ I'm tired; I want to sleep! If I'm mixing up my l's and r's like the poisoner, then I need my rest!"

"I've got them all down pat!" Wily Kit told Cheetara proudly.

Aequo grinned. "Oh, good," he said impishly. "Then that means I can start teaching you the real meat of the lesson. You've only got the spelling down; now it's time to teach you words."

"What's the difference?"

"The difference between spelling and words in sign language is just like the difference between hiragana and kanji in Japanese." Venenum had tried to show her and her brother how to write in both hiragana and kanji. Wily Kit had failed miserably.

Wily Kit paled a little; and then quickly changed the subject. "Hey, Lynx-O, I didn't know you knew sign language."

Lynx-O smiled at her. "Of course. Why shouldn't I?" She opened her mouth to say something, then snapped it shut again. Guessing what it was she was going to say, he chuckled. "I learned it long before I went blind, Wily Kit; and just because I can no longer see the signs from a distance, that doesn't mean one can't communicate to me with them."

"But if you can't see them—"

"Like this, little one," Aequo replied. He took Lynx-O's hand, and proceeded to spell something out, making sure that each hand signal was placed in Lynx-O's hand so that he could feel what they were. Wily Kit made a little "oh" in surprise. "It can take some time, but I can still communicate to him without making a sound. I just have to make sure that I'm right beside him so that he can feel what the signals are."

Lynx-O snorted. "And who's calling who an old man?"

The wolf-man's grin widened. "It was merely a demonstration."

"Indeed."

"Well, enjoy your squabbling," Cheetara told them, standing up. "I'm tired and need to sleep. I'll see you all in the morning."

Aequo nodded to her as she passed. "Good night, my lady."

"'Night, Cheetara!" Wily Kit called.

Much later, after looking back at these memories, Cheetara thought to herself it must have been some sort of strange omen that Lynx-O added, "Sweet dreams and sleep well."

* * *

**Cheetara looked around, startled. "Wha—where am I?" It looked as if she were standing in the center of the universe. Stars, comets, and planets rotated around her in an intricate and almost chaotic dance. Several shooting stars flew by her, ruffling her hair, making her laugh despite herself. There were so many lights in the darkness; how many of them had worlds? Rather than being frightened, as a small part of her said she should, she was delighted. She started to dance around in the nothingness, sometimes chasing random stars, sometimes pulling the planets into the dance with her.**

"**I don't know where I am," she said, holding a planet in her hands, certain that it was New Thundera. There was the Lair, there were the remains of Mumm-Ra's Pyramid, and over there were the Jungles of Darkness. "But I'm really having fun!"**

**There was a roar in the galaxy behind her, and she let go of New Thundera, putting it back in its orbit. She looked behind her and saw the Cat Signal, glowing red in the darkness, all the more noticeable among the white and blue stars. Rather than being worried, as she knew she probably should be, she laughed and started running after the Signal, as fast as she could, leaving a trail of stardust behind her. "Here I come!" she called playfully.**

**It was almost as if the Signal understood her, and teasingly stayed just out of her reach, so that she always had to put on more speed to catch up to it. At one point, she noticed that its origins came from one brightly glowing star, so she headed towards that. The closer she got, the brighter it became, and she slowly became aware that it was not a star, but an open doorway. She ran faster, and the light got even brighter, but just when it got too bright for her to see anymore, she tripped over what felt like a doorjamb.**

**And fell, surrounded by blinding light; she felt as if she no longer cast a shadow….**

And woke up.

She lay in her bed for a long while, staring at the window through which dawn could be seen. She didn't want to lose that sweet feeling the dream had left her with, but unfortunately, it seemed as if her mind couldn't hold the mood unless it was asleep. With a small sigh of regret, she sat up and got out of bed.

After her morning run, she entered the dining room, and nearly collapsed into a helpless pile of giggles. She resisted the urge, though; several lazy people would've tried to beat the crap out of her if she _had_ laughed. Bengali sat at the table, his head in his hands, and looking for all the world as if he just wanted to go right back to bed. Venenum, the golden cat poisoner, probably had a similar expression, though with that scarf covering her face one couldn't be sure. Lynx-O was not much for getting up early, and at the moment it was hard to tell if he hadn't just fallen asleep sitting up. Wily Kit and Wily Kat looked bushed too, and didn't seem too keen on their breakfast.

Only Aequo, Lion-O, and the little half-breed Ater seemed chipper, and the three of them were chatting quite happily at one end of the table, with the others occasionally sending them dirty looks. Ater spotted Cheetara first, and, with a happy squeak, pranced over to her, took her hand, and practically dragged her to the "happy" end of the table. Not two seconds after she sat down (and Ater perched in her lap for whatever reason), Snarf stomped into the room (yet another non-morning person), and placed a plate of scrambled eggs in front of her. He looked as if he wanted to throw it at her.

"Mornings around here are so cheerful," Aequo observed sarcastically, watching Snarf stomp back into the kitchen. "It almost makes me want to stay in bed to avoid the rush of good will coming from your comrades."

Venenum spat out something at him that was quite clearly vulgar, even if it wasn't in English.

"You get used to it after a while," Lion-O replied. "It seems your group has managed to keep everything rather even in the morning. I'm a little more concerned with how well Panthro and Pumyra are handling Tygra and Serica on Third Earth."

Ater pouted. "What did Mama mean when she said she 'needed a vacation' from me?"

"Probably that she and Tygra need to pummel each other a bit more before either one of them is satisfied." Lion-O glanced at Aequo. "I suppose it's too much to ask for them to quit arguing?"

"They've been fighting for decades by now," Bengali growled from the opposite end of the table. "I hardly think they're going to stop anytime soon."

"But I can't hug Mama when she's gone," Ater whimpered. Cheetara hugged him instead to try and make him feel better. It seemed to work.

Lion-O eyes twinkled a little mischievously. "Really? Well, what do you know. That's interesting." He hid a smile behind his mug of tea as Ater's ears perked up with interest.

"What?"

Lion-O leaned close to Ater as if telling a secret; Cheetara tried very hard to smother her giggling. "Snarf's been complaining lately that no one loves him. It's been years since I was a kid and Tyri doesn't like him very much. If you ask me, I think he's _very _much in need of a hug."

Ater didn't need to be told twice. In a split second, he'd leapt from Cheetara's lap, run from the room at top speed—unaware of the dirty looks he got from the lazy ones—straight into the kitchen. There was a squeal of surprise (Snarf), followed by a high-pitched "I love you!" (Ater), and then weeping of joy (Snarf).

"Why doesn't Snarf just breed of he likes children that much?" Aequo asked.

Lion-O opened his mouth to answer, looked confused, then glanced at Cheetara.

Cheetara shrugged. "Don't look at me, I can only guess. Besides, Lion-O, you were the one that used to go sneaking around Cat's Lair; didn't it ever occur to you to find out?"

* * *

**AGAINST THE UNIVERSE**

**The True Story Of the Lunataks**

_**Written by Luna**_

_**Illustrated by Amok**_

**Chapter 129**

**Volume 6**

**I would say, "It was a dark and stormy night," except that it's a cliché phrase that everyone has heard and no one knows where it came from. So I **_**won't**_** use it.**

**It **_**was**_** stormy, though; lightning was racing across the sky in vast quantities. Rain and hail crashed against the side of the prison walls, and the only comfort I could give poor Amok was a single lit candle. The sky outside was black; not even the lightning could illuminate it.**

**It was one of the lowest points we Luna-taks had ever been in. Tug Mug and Red Eye were left alone only because they had the muscle and experience to back up their threats, and of course I was not bothered because Amok would never leave my side.**

**Once the Mutants figured out that Aluro had the least amount of confidence, though, they wasted no time in breaking every bone in his body. Even now, I'm amazed to think that not only did Aluro survive such torture, he never uttered any information that the Mutants might've wanted. If not for Red Eye tending his wounds, he wouldn't be alive today.**

**But Chilla got the worst of it. Being female and so young, she became the prime target. Sad to say, it was she that witnessed the seven Luna-taks reduced to six, and she has never been the same since. The bright-eyed girl with a thirst for adventure and joy for causing trouble was destroyed when her mother was slaughtered by the Mutants, and to this day, all that remains is a miserable and distrustful woman nursing a murderous grudge.**

**As if watching her mother's death wasn't bad enough, all the guards assigned to keeping us prisoner were male. I don't think I need to say more than that. All of us now have serious prejudices against Mutants, but all together our hatred is nothing compared to Chilla's.**

**As I sat there, attempting to give Chilla whatever help I could in our cell, it seemed to me that there was no way we could escape from the Mutants. For a moment, just a short moment, I felt weakness creep upon me. I played with the idea of telling the Mutants what they wanted to know, if only for the ridiculously small hope that they'd let us free.**

**Then, the impossible happened.**

Here, Luna was distracted by the noise of a motorbike. Annoyed, she looked up from her word processor and glanced over towards Captain Bragg. Officer Mandora had landed nearby, probably to see how the prisoners were doing under his care_. It's been three months since Bragg felt comfortable enough to let us all out of the cages,_ Luna thought. _I wonder what the cop will think when she sees us all doing our own things, not killing each other, and no plans for escape._

_No obvious plans, at any rate._

* * *

"I sure am glad to see you, Officer Mandora," Captain Bragg said with a smile. "Can I assume you're… off-duty?"

Mandora did not look pleased at his suggestive tone of voice. "I told you before, Bragg, I am never off-duty. I came here to see how your prisoners were doing."

"Oh, well, they're doing beautifully, Officer Mandora. I never thought of myself as much of a teacher, but I seem to be doing pretty darned well with the Luna-taks and Mutant renegades. You'll notice I feel confident enough in them to leave them free from the train cars."

"He didn't really teach them anything," Crownan interrupted. "He called in professionals."

"I'll be the judge of how well they're doing, Bragg, so don't get cocky."

Bragg bowed to her. "Then allow me to be your tour guide, Officer Mandora. Let's have a look at Luna, as she and Amok are the closest at the moment."

Leading the way, Bragg brought Mandora over to Luna and Amok. Luna was astride Amok as she always was, but in her lap she had a word possessor, upon which she typed away almost carelessly. Amok lay on the ground, paper and crayons scattered all around him. "Here, you will notice that Luna has the talent for writing, and her steed Amok has learned to draw. They're currently working on a story about the Luna-taks, from beginning to end; Luna writes the material, Amok illustrates it."

"Amok show!" the creature said proudly, lifting up the picture he was working on.

Mandora jumped with a little bit of a screech.

"Surely there wasn't quite that much blood, Amok," Crownan said with a shudder. "Chilla would've been dead."

"Chilla hurt badly," Amok replied simply, looking annoyed. He added, almost as an afterthought, "Artistic license."

Luna stared at the word processor for a moment before screeching out at the top of her lungs, as if she did not notice Bragg and Mandora standing right by her, "RED EYE! WAS IT YOURS OR TUG MUG'S PRISON THAT THE MUTANT BRAT CAME THROUGH?"

"It was Tug Mug's!" Red Eye's distant reply came. "Remember how he complained about not having his gravity carbine?"

"Oh, yes… I'd forgotten about that…." Only then did she seem to notice Bragg and Mandora, and she feigned innocence. "Oh, forgive me, Officer Mandora, I didn't see you there."

Bragg was too busy trying to make sure he hadn't gone deaf because of Luna's shouting, and Crownan was still covering his head with his wings. Mandora, however, didn't seemed at all phased. "And just how skewed is your life story towards the forces of evil, Luna?"

"I'm actually coming at it from a _unique_ point of view," Luna replied, acting as if she were a love-struck teenage virgin, "that of the neutral standpoint, neither good _nor_ evil."

There was a short pause before Mandora smirked. "Your acting is horrible, Luna. Stick to writing."

Luna glared at her, all virtue gone. _"Acting?_ Feh, if you want acting, the actor is that way." She pointed her thumb to some point over her shoulder. "He's probably still practicing _Macbeth."_

Mandora seemed taken aback by that. "Macbeth?"

Crownan gave Mandora a pained look. "Please tell me you know who Shakespeare was; the Shakespearian tutor burst into tears when he realized none of these morons knew who he was."

"I know who Shakespeare was," Mandora replied tartly. "I just don't normally associate him with Luna-taks."

"You mean Mutants," Bragg said, taking Mandora's arm and leading her away from Luna, who'd gone back to her typing. "One in particular, as a matter of fact. He's been doing very well; so well, in fact, that he's managed to hold the attention of the whole lot of them for two hours with no trouble at all."

"Who—?" Mandora started to ask, but she was interrupted by the practicing actor.

"'_Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow,_

_Creeps-s-s forth this petty pace from day to day,_

_To the last s-s-syllable of recorded time;_

_And all our yesterdays-s-s… all our yesterdays-s-s….'"_

Slythe paused in his reciting, muttering under his breath as he pulled out his playbook and flipped to the page with the bookmark. "'And all our yesterdays-s-s have lighted fools-s-s'," he read from the book. "You think I'd remember that line, especially after spending so much time with lighted fools, yes-s-s…." The reptilian Mutant looked up and saw Mandora staring at him in utter shock. "What did you expect me to be practicing, huh? _Romeo and Juliet,_ maybe?"

"I think she's in shock because you can read," Crownan said before Brag could shut him up.

Bragg reached up and held the bird's mouth shut, quickly adding, "It's probably because you've chosen a part that suits you extremely well, Slythe. Not to mention she never thought you'd make an excellent Shakespearian villain."

Slythe petted the cover of his playbook. "Yes-s-s, Shakespeare created villains-s-s that are truly evil, and no one will be able to play them with the authentis-s-sity that _I _can…."

Mandora looked as if she were attempting not to smile. One could only guess at what going on through her head. "Well, then, I look forward to hearing of the best Shakespearian villain in the universe soon, Slythe. Too many people nowadays think good looks is all that makes a great actor."

Slythe looked quite pleased with himself. "Yes-s-s. Looks are _nothing_ compared to my talent."

"Well, we won't further interrupt your practice, Slythe," Bragg said, taking Mandora's arm and leading her away. "I'm sure you want to get that entire play down cold by the end of the day."

"And I shall," Slythe replied, almost to himself. He made memorizing the play sound like an evil plan. "Yes-s-s, indeed I shall…."

"I never would of thought of any of them as being artistic," Mandora exclaimed, seeming to be surprised and pleased at the same time. "Slythe does seem to be doing well, Amok is… a little disturbing, but very good. What of Luna?"

"She's writing her story in volumes. She's currently writing volume six, and I'm proud to say that the first two volumes of her story are in the process of being published now, with the third to join them soon."

"So I see. And what of the others?"

"Well, this clever thought crossed my mind concerning Aluro and Vultureman. The two of them are quite good with their hands, and so I wondered if perhaps they would be good with certain crafts."

"It really wasn't his idea," Crownan interrupted. "His grandmother thought of it."

"Crafts?" Mandora asked.

They rounded a corner, and saw that Aluro and Vultureman were sitting in a cage with the door wide open. The former was knitting a sweater, and the latter was crocheting a doll dress. They were both watching a Japanese make movie intently, with no interest in the rest of their surroundings. Nearby, not paying attention to anything but the book on massage that he was reading, was Tug Mug.

"Aluro and Vultureman are both very good at their crafts, and fast, too," Bragg told Mandora, pleased at her blank look. "They've both already gotten offers to work in stores that deal in custom-made goods. As for why Tug Mug isn't doing anything at the moment, he's studying up for his test tomorrow; he's decided to become a masseuse, and has already completed the entire course necessary for it."

Mandora was temporarily distracted as on the television screen fifty-something teenage girls linked hands, chanted to Irish-like music, and threw themselves under the wheels of an oncoming train. "WHAT THE F-?"

Bragg cleared his throat and quickly led Mandora away. "Let's not disturb them, they can get annoyed very easily if they make mistakes. Especially in the matter of knitting."

"They're more likely to be annoyed at having their movie interrupted," Crownan said.

Bragg looked like he was briefly temped to strangle the bird.

"_What in the world are they watching?!"_ Mandora snapped.

"A legitimate film, made at a time when Third Earth was still First Earth," Bragg told her soothingly. "Why don't we see what Chilla's up to? She's become quite the chef."

As he had hoped, that distracted Mandora. "A chef? Chilla?"

"Of course. Because of her unique talents, she doesn't need to work with a stove nor a freezer. She's become especially good at making sushi."

They came to an open area scrubbed clean of anything remotely flammable, and in the middle of it sat a calm-looking Chilla. Before her on a stone counter a deep fryer was boiling away, lumps of golden dough floating in the grease. She looked up at the approach of Mandora and Bragg, and said peacefully, "Care to have some fried dough, Officer? The first batch is almost finished."

Mandora nodded politely before grabbing Bragg's ear and growling into it, "Why is she acting as if she's drugged up to her eyeballs?" She threw a smile in Chilla's direction, and was glad to see that the female Luna-tak seemed not to have noticed the odd behavior.

"The doctor that came to give the group their physicals put her on it," Crownan answered while Bragg tried to get Mandora to release his ear. "She suffers from high blood pressure, racing of the mind, and lack of sleep. The doctor went so far as to tell Chilla that if she lost her temper the way she had been too many more times, she'd just drop dead of a random heart attack."

Mandora, satisfied with the answer, let go of Bragg's ear. "Is that so?"

"The medication is only a temporary fix," Bragg added, rubbing his ear. The part Mandora had been holding was already starting to bruise. "The dosages are specially designed to be decreased over time. In another two days, she won't be on any medication at all, and a few days after that, she'll be back to her usual nasty self."

Mandora opened her mouth to reply, but became distracted as Chilla gently placed a plate in her hands. In the plate was a piece of fried dough smothered in sugar and butter. "Thank you," the officer said uncertainly.

"You're welcome, and I do hope you enjoy it," the drugged Chilla replied, almost floating back to her counter. "It will be California rolls and tempura later tonight, and Belgian waffles tomorrow morning…."

"If you think she's bad now, you should have seen her when she was on the highest dosage four months ago," Crownan told the stunned officer. "A _My Little Pony_ Bushwoolie would've been able to beat her in a fistfight."

Mandora stood thinking for a while. As she watched Chilla, she saw Jackalman walk into view, carrying a number of things to the female Luna-tak. About half of the items were cleaning items, and the others seemed to be ingredients for California rolls and tempura. "What's Jackalman been up to?"

"He's been trained to clean up like a pro," Bragg told Mandora. "At first it was only because Chilla was so muddled by the drugs that she couldn't clean, but it turned out he has a talent for it, and enjoys it quite a bit. He's thinking of joining a professional cleaning service, and until Chilla's back to herself, he's been getting the things she needs for her cooking."

Jackalman paused while placing the cooking items in front of Chilla, staring at Mandora. Prancing over, he asked somewhat timidly, "Are you going to finish that, officer?"

Mandora glanced at the fried dough, decided she wasn't hungry, and gave it to Jackalman. He scarfed it down and took off. "Then that leaves only Monkian and Red Eye, Bragg," she said. What have they been up to?"

"Professional ballroom dancing," Bragg replied quickly. He barely managed to reach up and snap his fist around Crownan's beak before the bird could blurt out the truth. "Why don't I show you?"

_(The "professional ballroom dancing" was complete crap, but Bragg had a feeling that telling Mandora that Monkian had been training as a male stripper and Red Eye was to be his personal bouncer would not be the best of ideas. Thankfully, both Monkian and Red Eye realized this, and were at least able to dance together well enough that Mandora bought the ballroom dancing fib.)_

"So what do you think?" Bragg asked the officer.

She thought for a moment, watching Monkian and Red Eye tango across their impromptu stage, and nodded. "You're doing very well, Bragg. In fact, if you manage to completely reform them, I'll probably be able to get my superiors to hire you as a rehabilitation man for evil villains."

* * *

Luna, meanwhile, continued to write her story, uncaring of Mandora's thoughts on the Luna-taks and Mutants' current activities….

**As Tug Mug complained about not having his gravity carbine, he was distracted by a noise that was not part of the storm. "What was that?" he asked.**

"**What was what?" Red Eye responded irritably.**

"**I heard something. It sounded like footsteps." Curious, he rolled over to the window in his cell and looked out into the horrific storm.**

"**Who gives a fuck what it was," Chilla replied hoarsely. Her voice, once beautiful and clear, now sounded like it belonged to a woman who'd smoked for centuries. Only the heavens know what the Mutants did to it, as she has never again sounded like she once did. "It's just your hopeful imagination playing games on you. We're all going to be dead soon, so don't bother trying to make us happy."**

"**You're so cheerful, Chilla," Red Eye replied sarcastically, changing the bandages on Aluro, who was still unconscious from the torture he'd received that morning. "You act as if you're the only one who's been seriously hurt."**

**Tug Mug shouted in surprise, effectively halting whatever fight might've ensued between Chilla and Red Eye. The reason for his shock was ridiculously evident; just outside his cell's window, clinging to the bars and looking in at us with all the innocence of an abused child, was a young Mutant boy. It was too dark to tell what kind of Mutant he was.**

"**How many of you are there?" the boy asked. He was unaware that I was somewhat surprised at his eye swollen shut and the blood that had seeped into his fur from the wound on his head. He also acted as if he had no idea that he was soaking wet.**

"**What's it to you, brat?" Tug Mug snapped, utterly furious. "Curious to see what your people have done to us, or are you just doing some sort of stupid bet for your equally stupid friends?"**

**The boy was unfazed. "No. I came to get you out. I need to know how many of you there are, so that I can get you to a spaceship large enough for you all."**

"**I must be dreaming," Aluro's voice whispered across the bars. He probably came to to just as the boy started speaking. He slowly sat up, looking in the direction of Tug Mug's window. "Did someone just mention something about escaping?"**

"**How do we know this isn't some sort of stupid trick?" Chilla snarled, slowly getting to her feet. She looked ready to blast the boy into smithereens without a moment's hesitation.**

"**I swear to you on my life," the boy said seriously, "that if you ever believe this is a trick on my part, you can kill me."**

**The silence that rang though the dungeons was accompanied only by the loudest crack of thunder I've ever heard in my life. Whatever made me reply, "There are six of us," I'll never know. But it saved **_**all**_** our lives.**

**I can't really remember how exactly that boy managed to get us out of the dungeons, far away from the military facility we'd been held captive in, and straight to the spaceship that ended up taking us to Third Earth. It all happened too quickly, and the panic we no doubt all felt fogged my mind.**

**As the boy had proven that he was serious about helping us escape, we found no reason to kill him. Perhaps that was where the last shred of honor we had went, using it to spare the life of the boy that had saved us. Or maybe we were too busy licking our own wounds to care. I don't know whether or not that boy is still alive; it's all too possible his own people killed him for letting the Luna-taks of Plundarr escape.**

**As we were getting onto the ship, Mutant guards appeared out of nowhere and made to capture us again. The boy, terrified, screamed at us to hurry up and leave. Despite myself, I called back to him, "And what of you?"**

"**I don't know, just go! Please! I can't stop my father from punishing me for letting you go, but no matter what he does, I will not regret getting you all out of this mess! It's not right, what he was doing to all of you!"**

_**Father?**_** I thought. **_**Is he the son of one of those that tortured us?**_** And still, I could not yet find it in my heart to leave him. "What's your name, boy? Perhaps one day we can return the favor?"**

"**Luna, we need to **_**go!"**_** Red Eye shouted from inside the ship. "Close that blasted door!"**

"**If I tell you, will you **_**leave**_** already?" the boy screamed.**

**I nearly screamed myself. **_**"Yes!**_** Tell me your name!"**

"_**Luna, close that door!"**_

"**My name is**

"Luna!"

The random whisper broke through Luna's concentration, causing her to jump a little in surprise. The mood broken, she sighed with vexation and turned to Slythe. "What is it, reptilian?"

"How much longer until we implement our plan of es-s-scape?" Slythe asked, acting as if he were showing off his drama skills to Luna. It was one of the best ways they'd come up with to keep Bragg from realizing their intentions. "It's getting a little annoying here, yes-s-s? I don't want to wait for that idiot cop to s-s-say when we're allowed to leave."

"The day after Chilla takes her last doses of medicine," Luna replied irritably. "We're going to need her to be somewhat lucid when we leave, and as long as she's on those drugs she's about as useful as a dust bunny. Now get back to your practicing before Bragg notices anything…."

* * *

Cheetara lay back in her blankets, a strange feeling surrounding her. Her sixth sense was bothering her, but she couldn't figure out what in the world it was getting at. _It's as if it's trying to tell me about something, _she thought, _but it can't even figure out if it's for something good or bad. It's actually a little frustrating. _She sighed, closed her eyes, and allowed her body to relax. In her mind, thoughts of Lion-O brought a smile to her lips, and she sighed again, this time happily, as those thoughts ran their course—

—**and when she opened her eyes, she saw nothing. She was confused, but not frightened for some reason. **_**Oh,**_** she thought. **_** I must have gone blind. **_**The absurdity of that random thought made her subconscious mind come to the conclusion that she was dreaming, so it didn't bother her. In this world of unreasonable thoughts, she completely forgot that she was ever able to see, and proceeded to wander around, touching, smelling, and listening.**

**Her hands touched tree trunks, the branches and leaves tapping gently against her face as she slowly walked by. She breathed in, her senses flooded with the aromas of flowers, grass, honey, and warm breezes. Twigs sometimes snapped beneath her feet, gravel crunched, and things fluttered in the zephyr of her passing. There was no color to her world, no light, but she could feel the texture, smell the scents, and hear the sounds.**

**She heard footsteps that were not hers, and stopped moving. She was not frightened, though. Only an insane curiosity devoured her thoughts. "Who's there?"**

"**It's me!" a piping voice said happily. "What're you doing here, Cheetara? I thought I was alone."**

"**Ater? Are you Ater?"**

"**Yes. Can't you tell?"**

"**Where are we?"**

"**The Dream World. Isn't it pretty? Well, except Nightmare Realm, most of it is really pretty. Or weird. There's some place not far off from Candy Kingdom called Drug-Induced Land, and I went there once, but it's **_**really **_**weird."**

**Cheetara couldn't help but giggle a little. "Ater, I don't think I've heard you talk so much before." There was a long while of silence, and she guessed that the boy had shrugged. "As for it being pretty, I don't know. It seems that I'm blind here."**

"**Really? That's weird."**

**She heard motion, of someone stepping nearby. "Ater, was that you?"**

"**No, someone else's come."**

"**Who is it?" It sounded like the new person was moving something, but that was all. The thought that the other person might not be able to speak came out of nowhere, and she heard herself say, "I cannot see. Can you not speak?"**

**The stranger took her hands in his own; it was only upon touching him that she even realized the sex of her companion. In her hands, his started moving, one symbol after another. **_**I was here first,**_** he told her with his hands, **_**so you tell me who**_** you **_**are.**_

**A mischievous little grin spread across her face. "No. I don't think I will tell you who I am. Not yet."**

Once again, Cheetara woke up feeling as if everything in the world were utterly perfect. Her heart beat happily inside her chest, and a nostalgic warmth was wrapped around her. Determined not to lose the feeling so quickly this time, she closed her eyes, reveling in the beauty that enveloped her. Never had she felt like this before, and she loved it.

As the feeling faded, however, she sighed and opened her eyes. "That's twice now," she thought aloud. "That was weird…."

* * *

_It feels like I'm on a shuffleboard,_ she thought later, heading towards the Feliner. She, Lynx-O, the Thunder kittens, and Lion-O were off to Third Earth so that Pumyra and Tygra could come to New Thundera for a while. Venenum was supposed to come too, but as no one could find her, they all assumed she'd hid herself somewhere on the ship and would reappear again later.

Back on Third Earth, things had apparently gotten a little out of control. Tygra and Serica were fighting with each other so much—and so viciously—that Panthro and Pumyra could barely keep the two from killing each other. _I guess so many years of fighting makes for extremely bad habits that are even harder to kill. I wonder if it'll ever be possible for those two to tolerate each other for more than an hour at a time._

Ater promptly appeared out of nowhere, as he and the other spies always seemed to enjoy doing, and took Cheetara's hand. "What do you think of the Dream World?" he asked her innocently. He was coming along, as they felt it wasn't right to keep him away from Serica for too long.

"It's interesting so far," she replied without thinking. She stopped dead in her tracks, staring at Ater in shock. He looked up at her with confusion. "Wait… what?"

"The Dream World." He tilted his head to the side. "Don't you know what Dream World is? If you're conscious enough to ask where you are, then you'll remember it when you wake up. Most people don't remember at all."

"It… really exists?"

"Yup! And once you're awake in the Dream World, you'll always be awake there." He smiled. "It's like a second life, where you can have almost anything you want! Mama doesn't remember it, but Daddy used to. We used to play there, like we couldn't do on Plun-Darr."

Cheetara blinked. It was as if finding Ater in this Dream World had opened up some sort of flood gates between him and her. She'd never heard him talk so much to anyone before, not even Serica, and she'd certainly _never_ heard him speak about his father. _It's almost as if he's lonely, _she thought. "Well… maybe we can play there, too. Is that okay?"

Ater looked delighted. "Okay!"

Cheetara continued towards the Feliner again, Ater happily chirping away beside her with all the games that the two of them would play that night. _A world where our dream-selves can live a second life, _she thought to herself. _It sounds like a fantasy story conceived by a very bored person. Still, this could be interesting._

* * *

Chilla's mind felt fuzzy, and she was angry. This was hardly unusual; she was almost always angry about something. Right now, however, she didn't know if she wanted to kill Bragg or that fucking doctor more—the doctor for screwing around with her head by giving her those drugs and telling her about her physical weaknesses, or Bragg for instilling in her a joy of doing something so fucking domestic.

She couldn't take her anger out on her fellow Luna-taks or even the Mutants—they'd all decided for whatever reasons of their own that they wouldn't leave her behind, so she was reluctantly grateful. And there were no Thundercats around for her to beat up just yet. So instead she took her frustrations out on the food she was cooking. She'd felt like making bread buns and hamburgers, and it gave her great delight to beat the ever-loving shit out of first the bread dough and then the meat.

_I hate them,_ she snarled, slamming her fist into the meat as hard as she could, uncaring of the juices that splattered all over the kitchen. Jackalman could clean it up later. _I hate them all!_ She was so upset, she didn't even bother to admit to herself that she was jealous. She was jealous of the other Luna-taks for being able to grasp exactly what they wanted with apparently no effort. She was jealous of the Mutants for finally proving in their own ways that they could be competent at _something._ She was _especially_ jealous of the Thundercats for having seemingly perfect lives.

And she _hated_ her mother. She hated her mother more than anything for being so weak and easily killed all those years ago.

_Only a few days longer,_ she thought, _before we're able to get back at the Thundercats for what they did to us. I'm going to tear them to shreds, ruin them, beat them, and make them pay so much they'll be weeping for mercy! _The thoughts were irrational, but she didn't care. The anger and hatred delighted a small part of her mind, just enough that she was able to ignore the sick feeling she had at the bottom of her stomach.

* * *

**Apparently, the Dream World was perfectly happy to have background music on occasion. Cheetara had absolutely no idea why it had decided that Daft Punk was appropriate this night.**

**Then again….**

**Things had only gotten stranger, but at the same time, she felt more and more comfortable in this world as time passed. **_**I suppose it makes sense in a way,**_** she thought. **_**Unless one has been condemned to Nightmare Realm or Drug-Induced Land for whatever reasons, then people only enter this world when they are asleep, and therefore relaxed.**_

**It was just her and Ater again; whomever it was they'd run into the night before had disappeared. So the little half-breed gladly led her to his favorite spot to play his favorite game: throwing rocks off of a cliff. It was extremely simple; all Cheetara had to do was take a rock, throw it as hard as she could, then take Ater's word for how far it had gone.**

"**Ater, did you recognize who it was we saw last night?" she asked him after a while. For whatever reason, her curiosity had been peaked by the stranger. Even while awake, she'd remembered what it had felt like when he touched her hand, and a nagging little feeling kept telling her it was someone she knew.**

"**Um… he looked a little familiar, but I really don't know. It was like he was wearing something different from what I'm used to." She heard the air whiz as Ater threw a rock. "Awe, that one didn't go as far as yours! Bummer!" Once again, footsteps came up behind them. "Oh! He's here now. Maybe you can ask him with your hands, like you two were talking last night."**

**Cheetara immediately turned around to try and find the stranger, her hands outstretched. As she'd hoped, he took her hands in his. "My name's Cheetara," she said. "What's your name?"**

**She literally felt his surprise through his hands, as if he'd certainly not expected that answer. He suddenly took one of her hands and held it to his mouth, where she could feel that he was smiling broadly. **_**I don't think I'll tell you just yet,**_** he signed into her other hand. **_**Although, I do know who you are… and must admit that I've been attracted to you for a very long time.**_

**She blushed, breaking into a grin herself. She heard Ater snickering, and suspected the child was more adept at reading sign language than he'd let on earlier. "Why tell me that now, and not while we're awake?"**

_**Because this is a dream,**_** he replied, **_**and I know you can tell I'm speaking the truth here. In the waking world, you might not believe me.**_

Cheetara woke up to the sound of two things; one of them was more Daft Punk music playing on the stereo, the other was the sound of someone trying to call them. Lion-O managed to turn off the music and answer the call at the same time, though he didn't do it fast enough to keep Lynx-O from waking up as well. Venenum was in the seat beside Lion-O, wide awake and reading some comic book called _Hellsing_. In the back, the Thunder kittens slept on, ignorant of the noise, as did Ater, who'd fallen asleep on Cheetara's lap.

"Mandora to Lion-O, Mandora to Lion-O," a familiar and not particularly pleasant voice called. At the moment, it was not a welcome voice, either, as Cheetara did not like being awoken from her increasingly intriguing dream. "Mandora to Lion-O, come in."

"Lion-O here. What is it, Mandora?"

"Something of an emergency, though I honestly can't say how bad. The Luna-taks and Mutants have escaped from Way Out Back."

Cheetara sat up in shock. "What?" Normally, this wouldn't have bothered her _too_ much, but while Wily Kit and Wily Kat were certainly trained enough to take care of themselves, there was no telling how capable Ater was of defending himself. _We might accept Ater wholeheartedly, _she thought, _but _them?!_ Both the Mutants nor the Luna-taks have shown little restraint… there's no telling how they might react if they realized Ater was a half-breed…._

"Runa-taks?" Venenum said to herself, pausing in her reading as if not quite believing what she heard.

"From what Captain Bragg was able to tell me before I shipped him off to the nearest interstellar hospital," Mandora continued, "they seemed to be heading for Third Earth."

"And you saw that we were on our way there and figured to tell us," Lion-O replied. "Understood, Mandora. We'll keep an eye out for them. If necessary, we'll ship them right back to Way Out Back. Lion-O out."

"Good thing that we're getting Tygra and Pumyra off of Third Earth, then," Lynx-O said as Lion-O shut off the communicator. "They'll be taking Tyri with them, and there's no doubt in my mind either group would use the child as a hostage, given how young she is." He paused. "But what about Ater?"

"Ater can take care of himseruf," Venenum said, sticking her nose back into her book.

"Perhaps," Lion-O added with a shrug, "but we're going to have to tell Serica as soon as we land, anyway. As he's her charge, I'm far more likely to take her word for it."

"You just don't rike me." She didn't seem to care.

He shrugged again, a smiling a little from embarrassment. "Yeah… that, too."

* * *

"Luna-taks, aye?" Serica said, deftly typing information into the laptop she had open in front of her. "As for the Mutants, I think I know which group you're talking about; they'd be a small sect of Warlord Komodo's 'specialized' soldiers."

"Komodo?" Wily Kit asked curiously, peeking over Serica's shoulder. "Who's he?"

"Don't worry about it, I doubt you'll have to deal with him anytime soon. Luna-taks, though, I remember hearing about them from Aequo…. Ah! Here they are!" She glanced at the profiles that popped up on her computer screen. "Huh. Quite a list of offences they've got, especially on Plun-Darr. The dates can't be right, though; considering their birth dates and the last time they were seen on Plun-Darr, most of them would have to be dead by now."

Lion-O shook his head. "We've an… uh, _acquaintance_ by the name of Mumm-Ra who magically sealed them away, then released them again only a few years ago. I don't know how long they'd been trapped, but you might be able to guess from the information you've got."

"I'd say about… fifty years guessing from the last time they were seen. Maybe more, maybe less." Serica narrowed her eyes. "Well, I'm not _too _worried about any of them except the one called Aluro. Ater's been trained to hide at the first sight of danger, but this psychic Luna-tak might be able to see through that."

"Red Eye can see through illusions of invisibility," Lion-O began, but Venenum cut him off.

"What Ater does is not irusion." She glanced over in the corner of the room, where Ater was trying to teach Lynx-O how to play cat's cradle. "He riterally becomes 'not _sere,'_ not _'unseen'_. If Ater went into zat mode right now, even Rynx-O wourud not be abru to find him."

Lion-O grinned as if humoring her, then when Venenum was distracted leaned over to Wily Kit and whispered, "Did you understand _any_ of what she just said?"

"Wait a minute, who's that?" Wily Kat pointed at the screen. "I think you're computer's messed up; there's only six Luna-taks, not seven. That woman right there shouldn't be in this group."

"Hmm?" Serica frowned and opened the file of the one Wily Kat had pointed to. "No, she's a Luna-tak alright, best friend and sworn ally of the one called Luna… and the only one with a confirmed date of death. Apparently she was 'executed' on Plun-Darr during their imprisonment there. Her profile _does _belong here; you just don't know her because she died before you were born."

Cheetara squinted. "She looks a little like Chilla."

"Other way around, Chilla looks like her, as she's her only daughter."

Wily Kat scoffed. "Obviously she didn't raise Chilla that well."

"Hmm…." Serica silently contemplated him for a long moment, making him uncomfortable. "Back to the problem at hand, concerning these Luna-taks and Mutants… you're the Lord of the Thundercats," she turned to Lion-O. "What do you suggest we do?"

Lion-O crossed his arms, thinking carefully. "In the time it took us to get here," he told her, "the Luna-taks and the Mutants might've already landed. I'm having Tygra and Pumyra do a quick scan of Third Earth before they head off to New Thundera to see if they can find anything. I want to wait for a report from them before we do anything."

* * *

**Cheetara couldn't find Ater, and she had no clue where he could be. She called out to him, hoping he'd call back in reply, but she heard nothing. **_**I wonder where he could be,**_** she thought, walking through the brush carefully so she wouldn't trip on anything. In her sightless state, she discovered she was somewhat uncomfortable with not knowing where she was.**

_**Maybe he's having a nightmare. If that's the case, it won't be until tomorrow night that I find him again. **_** She sighed a little in disappointment. She'd discovered much to her chagrin during the flight to Third Earth that she could only go to the Dream World once every night. If she woke up for anything, even if she was only in half-wakefulness to go to the toilet, she would not be able to return to the Dream World until the next night.**

**A hopeful thought suddenly popped into her mind. **_**Maybe I'll find that stranger again.**_** She immediately knew if she did, this would be a very pleasant dream indeed.**

**One that Ater was **_**far**_** too young to watch.**

**Almost as if he'd heard her thoughts, she heard the stranger's approach and turned in his direction. "Is that you?" she asked hopefully, walking towards him, her arms outstretched.**

**He took her hands in his again, and she knew from the feel that it really was him. **_**Yes, it's me,**_** he signed in her hands. **_**Are you alright? You're all flushed.**_

**Instead of answering him verbally, she allowed her hands to drift up his arms to find his shoulders, and stood on her tiptoes to kiss him. She missed his mouth, and got him on the cheek instead, his hair brushing against her face. Despite his momentary surprise, though, he corrected her mistake, and joined into game with enthusiasm.**

And this time when Cheetara woke up, the bed sheets were in a complete disarray, her nightgown needed to be washed, and she breathed heavily in satisfaction. She moaned as she stretched, her body oozing contentment, the wet parts of the sheets and nightgown causing her to blush in pleasure.

Her only disappointment was that she was alone, but it was soon pushed away with the thought that she was going to find out who this stranger was. _He's the one for me,_ she thought. _Whoever he is, he's the one I've been waiting for all my life. I'm sure of it._

She blinked. "Dang," she said aloud in annoyance as she sat up. "I forgot to ask him for his name."

* * *

Tygra and Pumyra had been unable to find anything, so that meant the Thundercats on Third Earth had to put their vacation time on hold and take turns guarding the Lair and Tower, sleeping, or scouting the wilderness to see if they could find the Mutants or Luna-taks.

Cheetara found out very quickly that she hated scouting with Venenum.

Having brought the Thunder Strike with them from New Thundera, that made it somewhat easier to scout the planet without possibly putting themselves in danger. For whatever reason, this seemed to annoy Venenum to the point where she had to insist on making herself a complete nuisance. "Zis is cowardry," the poisoner kept muttering in the left pod, "frying up here out of reach of sa enemies. Can we at reast rand near sa Baofuru Swamp so I can get some needed ingredients? I am running row on some sings."

"I really do wish you'd just shut up, Venenum," Lynx-O snapped after about an hour of listening to her complaining. She seemed to have a tendency of making his temper wear thin. "And I have no intention of landing at the Baoful Swamp if I can help it."

Cheetara winced a little, somewhat glad that she was in the right pod of the Thunder Strike and not in the main cabin with him. "Then you're not going to like what I have to say, Lynx-O. I'm definitely getting readings of something down there. We're going to have to land at the Baoful Swamp."

Lynx-O sighed. "And here I was hoping it was just my imagination. Or that I was going senile."

"Prease do not become seniru," Venenum interrupted offhandedly, as if the conversation meant little to her. "I enjoy rife."

"I said _'senile',_ not _'suicidal', _you _**(please insert desired expletive here)**_!"

"Ignore her, Lynx-O," Cheetara said soothingly. "I have the feeling she enjoys getting people angry."

The nasty chuckling from the left pod only seemed to confirm Cheetara's theory.

Landing at the Baoful Swamp, while certainly not a holiday, did at least give Cheetara and Lynx-O some relief from Venenum's complaining. "I'm beginning to see why Panthro was so happy to see her go with us today," Cheetara said with a sigh as the poisoner ran off towards the swamp water and started collecting samples of it in some of the empty vials she seemed to pull out of nowhere. She followed the spy's footsteps unwillingly, Lynx-O close behind her with the portable Braille Board. "If she didn't obey Lion-O without hesitation all the time, I wouldn't put it past her to poison us all because we don't like her."

"Much as she might know we don't care for her company, I don't think she'd sink that low," Lynx-O replied. "I'm certain she'd never deliberately kill us."

"How about deliberately putting something in our food to make us miserably ill for about a week?"

"Well… yes, that I can see her doing." Lynx-O's ears suddenly perked up, and he swerved around to face the Thunder Strike. "Ater!"

Cheetara turned as well. Sure enough, Ater poked his nose over the control boards in the Thunder Strike. "Ater, what on Thundera are you doing?"

"And how did you get onto the Thunder Strike without my noticing?"

Ater had the decency to look ashamed. "I wanted to come with you, but Mama wouldn't let me. So I stowed away."

"This isn't a game, Ater," Cheetara told him. "We could be in serious danger at any time."

"I torud you," a familiar and not welcome voice said from behind the Thundercats. "If Ater chooses to make himseruf 'not sere,' _no one_ can find him."

Cheetara glared over her shoulder at Venenum. "Do you have any idea how much I'd love to pummel you right now?"

Even with the scarf covering her face, she could tell the spy was smiling. _"Ee, sou desu."_

* * *

Serica poked her noise around the tree, being careful not to be seen by the quartet. When she couldn't find Ater after Lynx-O, Cheetara, and Venenum had left, she'd guessed what had happened and had followed to keep an eye on her charge. While it amused her to see Ater had succeeded in surprising the Thundercats, some of the things she'd read about the Luna-taks the night before had unnerved her. Even Wily Kat's assurances about Captain Bragg's good intentions hadn't eased her worries.

Her head snapped around as a twig cracked behind her. Almost immediately, her full attention was captured by a glowing blue ball that hung just inches in front of her face.

"Don't run away, little lady," a soothing voice told her. "I'm your friend. We certainly can't have you alerting Lynx-O and Cheetara of our presence, so just come with me, and I'm sure you'll be glad you did. It doesn't take a genius to see that you're related to Bengali, and I'm sure Lion-O would never allow a fellow Thundercat's relative to be held hostage for _too_ long, right?"

"Yes, that's right," she replied, her voice flat and monotone as she followed Aluro, completely under his spell.

* * *

Cheetara sometimes wondered why it was that the Thundercats could not be snuck up upon on occasion, but could every _other_ time. A tiny part of her admitted it just might be a little bit of overconfidence.

This was, of course, one of the times when they didn't realize their enemies were all around them until it was too late. Before either Cheetara or Lynx-O could react, the former found herself crashing to the ground, too heavy to lift herself, and the latter was quickly seized by Monkian and Jackalman.

Perhaps Venenum had heard them, or perhaps she was paranoid enough to always be prepared for anything. She merely leapt out of the way every time Tug Mug shot at her with his gravity carbine, and any Mutant that got too close to her was immediately enveloped and knocked out by that gaseous concoction she'd created. Having already put Slythe and Vultureman out of commission, she threw another vial at Lynx-O's feet, getting both Monkian and Jackalman at the same time.

Lynx-O quickly set up his light shield and used it against Red Eye before the Luna-tak could join the fight. Unfortunately however, this allowed Amok to sneak up upon behind him and grab him. "Amok crush," the creature said with a nasty grin as he tightened his grip on Lynx-O. There was a loud _crack,_ and Lynx-O cried out in pain.

"Leave him alone!" Cheetara yelped, trying to move.

"And just what do you plan to do, lying there the way you are, Cheetara?" Luna said with a nasty grin. Amok let go of Lynx-O, who fell to the ground with a groan and didn't move.

_Ater!_ Cheetara thought. _Ater could be in danger!_ The sheer weight of the gravity carbine prevented Cheetara from doing more than turning her head, glancing at the Thunder Strike to make sure Ater was okay. The half-breed had disappeared again, and she sighed a little in relief. _If Lynx-O couldn't even detect him when he was 'not there', then I'm sure Red Eye won't either._

Luna glanced over her shoulder. "What's taking everyone so long? Nab that stupid female already!"

"_You_ try keeping her still, Luna!" Tug Mug snapped back in exasperation, still attempting to hit Venenum with the gravity carbine. "She's bouncing around like a damn grasshopper!" The Mutants still out like lights, Red Eye and Amok joined into the chase to try and catch the slippery spy. She easily dodged their grabbing hands, throwing more vials that exploded and released their noxious gasses.

Venenum landed not a split second after that at the feet of none other than Chilla, who wasted absolutely no time in freezing the spy's feet to the ground. "I guess grasshoppers don't like cold weather," the female Luna-tak said with a sneer.

"Is zat how you pray sa game, ne?" Venenum snapped pulling out yet another vial, probably with some toxic chemical that would melt the ice. Before she could use it, Serica appeared behind her and smacked her oversized portfolio into the poisoner's head.

"_That_ is how we play the game, my annoying friend," Aluro said charmingly as he stepped out from behind Serica, looking down at the barely conscious female. "I hypnotize your friend, and _she_ puts you out of commission for us."

Tug Mug, no doubt infuriated with Venenum having successfully dodged all of his shots, grabbed her by the legs and wrenched her feet out of the ice. "Can you swim, feline?" he asked with a nasty snarl. At her look of shock, he picked her up as if she weighed nothing and flung her into the swamp water. "Take a dive and cool your head!"

"Tug Mug, no!" Luna screeched, too late. Venenum sank like a rock before Amok could get to the water in time. The rest of the Luna-taks joined Luna near the water, probably trying to find the spy as well. "Damn it, Tug Mug, that gives us _less_ hostages to use against the Thundercats!"

Cheetara stared in horror. _Venenum might be mostly immune because of all that poison she eats,_ she thought, trying to crawl to the swamp water, _but in her current state she can't swim! She could drown!_

"I can't see her," Aluro told Luna, "and there's no way any of us can go into that water without getting killed ourselves. Great one, Tug Mug, and just when our records for murders had been clean for the past ten years."

"Shut up," muttered the Luna-tak in question.

Luna glanced over her shoulder at Cheetara and Lynx-O, her eyes briefly looking at the hypnotized Serica before returning to the Thundercats. The Mutants were slowly reviving, and looked around them curiously as if uncertain what had just happened. "We'll have to take the ones we've got. We can't search for that female now. Her body will probably turn up later."

* * *

Ater watched in fright from the cockpit of the Thunder Strike, shaking uncontrollably. Like Aluro, he had power over minds, but did not use it offensively to put his enemies off guard. "I'm not here, I'm not here," he kept saying aloud, over and over. Unseen in his pocket, a blue jewel the size of an egg—very similar to the ball on Aluro's Psych club—glowed brightly with every word. "I'm not here, I'm not here," the half-breed whimpered, trying not to cry in terror. Slythe even looked right at Ater, their faces not more than an inch or two apart, but he neither saw nor heard the half-breed.

Continuing his chant, Ater watched as the Luna-taks and Mutants piled into the Lunattacker and Ice Runner with their three prisoners, and on an impulse, jumped out of the Thunder Strike and grabbed onto the Lunattacker's tail. He managed to pull himself onto the vehicle just as it took off, holding on for his life.

* * *

Lion-O froze in his steps, a familiar sound echoing through the halls of the Lair. "Danger!" he gasped, quickly pulling his sword out of the Claw Shield and raising the hilt to his eyes. "Sword of Omens, give me sight beyond sight!"

The Sword of Omens never showed Lion-O any more than he needed to see to know what was wrong. All Lion-O saw was Cheetara and Lynx-O tied up and thrown into the back of the Lunattacker, Serica clearly under Aluro's hypnosis as she held onto him on the Ice Runner, and Ater riding on the back of the Lunattacker like a stowaway. Though he didn't give it too much thought, Lion-O _did_ notice that the half-breed's image kept fading in and out, as if he were invisible.

"But Venenum went with them," he told the sword. "Where is she?"

What the Sword of Omens showed him next caused him to fly through the halls of the Lair like the wind, calling out at the top of his lungs, "Panthro! There's trouble! We have to hurry!"

* * *

Venenum lay at the bottom of the Baoful Swamp. It wasn't that she was heavy, but rather that she had deliberately grabbed a branch stuck at the bottom of the pool and had dragged herself down. The poison did not harm her much, her immunity to poisons too high for the swamp water to be deadly to her, but her lungs _were_ filling with the water.

She didn't care; she'd always been somewhat curious to know what it would be like to drown. It hurt, the water burning her lungs like fire, causing her body to spasm in pain. Still, she held onto that branch tightly, refusing to let go, as if some vindictive part of her refused to allow anyone the satisfaction of saving her.

Yet, even though she was in terrible pain, had no doubt been under water for nearly ten minutes without bothering to hold her breath, she continued to live. She was getting quite annoyed with herself. _Why won't I just die already?_ she thought peevishly.

She heard something above her, and opened her eyes curiously. Her heart stopped beating for a moment, startled, her eyes wide in surprise. _That's not possible,_ she thought, thinking perhaps the murky water was tricking her vision. _Not unless I'm already dead…._

Claudis stood on top of the water, smiling benevolently down at her, young just like she remembered him. The surface of the poisonous liquid rippled beneath his feet, as if it were solid only for him as he knelt down towards her.

Even though the water surrounding her kept her from feeling the tears, she knew she was crying. _Claudis,_ she thought, her free hand reaching up to him. Even as she did so, her heart started breaking. _You came for me… you remembered me…._

He reached down into the water and took her hand in his. It was warm, just as she remembered how it used to feel, and she tightened her grip on his so hard she was surprised he didn't react. "Come, Kinyoubi," she heard him say through the water. "It's long past the time for you to come home."

Her heart froze, anger dispelling any sorrow she might've felt. _I knew it. You've only ever cared for _her.

Once he had ahold of her hand, though, he did not let go. His smile widened, as if he knew exactly what she was thinking while she tried to pull away. "I want you to live too, Venenum. More than anything, I especially want _you _to live."

She felt herself being split in two. One half of her held onto the branch in a vice grip, determined to die. The other half tightened its hold on his hand, determined to live like he wanted her to. Neither half would cave in to the other, or give in.

So the branch gave in instead, releasing its clutch on the bottom of the pool.

Venenum felt herself being dragged up through the water, the despairing half of her still holding onto the branch in disbelief, and the moment she broke through to the surface, the scarf around her face was ripped off. "I've got her, Panthro!" she heard a voice say, so similar to the one she remembered, but different. She started coughing sporadically, swamp water forcing its way out of her lungs to make way for air. "I don't know how, but she's still alive!"

"Damn you, brat!" she choked, pulling away from Lion-O as soon as he got her to dry land. _"Damn you!"_

"That's impossible!" she heard Panthro say as she fell to her knees and continued coughing up the swamp water. If anything, _that_ was more painful than breathing in the water in the first place. "It's been nearly thirty minutes! There's no way she could've survived!"

Inexplicably angry, she stood up again, brandishing the branch she'd taken with her from the bottom of the swamp. Panthro backed away quickly when he saw the look on her face; she knew she had a frightening YOU ARE DEAD MEAT look when she was angry, just as she also knew the numerous scars that marred her face made her threat of death all the more plausible. _"I WILL KILL YOU BOTH!"_ she screamed.

Panthro blinked. "I actually understood that…."

She scowled, breathing deeply in preparation for another shriek.

"I don't believe you'll do any such thing," Lion-O replied calmly, walking towards her and taking both of her hands in only one of his. She jumped at his touch. He was just like his father, unassuming, and quite stupidly trusting. "I don't know what got into you, but didn't it strike you as odd that you didn't drown? Take another look at what you're holding, and if you still feel like killing us, I'd suggest a _different_ weapon. The one you've got at the moment won't do much."

Curious despite herself, she glanced at the "branch". It was no more a branch than the Sword of Omens was a weed; the Totem of Dera flashed mockingly at her in the light, as if it had known exactly what thoughts were going through her head. It was glowing slightly, healing her of the threat of drowning even as she watched. "Of aru sa stupid coincidences," she growled at it. "WHY ZIS?" She was half convinced that it was laughing at her.

"You'd prefer to die before helping Serica and Ater?" Lion-O interrupted.

She snarled at him. "And damn you, too!"

"I'll take than as a 'no'." He handed her back her scarf, which she gratefully tied over her face after tossing the Totem of Dera to the ground. "I don't know how we're going to do it, but we have to get to Dark Side. That's where they were heading."

Despite herself, she became somewhat intrigued. "Oh?" she asked, breathing slowly to calm herself. "And zat wiru be difficurut?"

"There are only two ways into Dark Side. One is past Fire Rock mountain, but the volcano is almost pure Thundrainium, and we can't make it across that way. The other way is through the Forest of Mists, but the fog there is so dense that without Lynx-O we can't see our way through."

"Can you not just fry into Dark Side from space?"

"The cloud cover over Dark Side makes it suicidal to even think about it. Only Snarfer was able to successfully get into Dark Side that way, and he was crashing at the time."

"Sen it wiru be sa Forests of Mists for us, _ne?"_ She started walking towards the Thunder Strike, once again fully in control of herself. "Get in. I wiru dribe us sere."

"Didn't you hear what Lion-O said about the Forest of Mists?" Panthro asked with exasperation.

She glared over her shoulder at him. "I was not aruways abru to see. _Baka."_

* * *

For all that Sky Tomb was a wreck and wouldn't be in working conditions for months—if not years—that did not mean the prison cells were a complete mess. In fact, the irony was that the prison cells were _more_ secure inside all the rubble and twisted metal than they had been when Sky Tomb was in one piece.

With Lynx-O passed out from Amok's attack, Cheetara knew there was no way she'd be able to carry him, and until he woke up, she would have no idea how badly he was injured. Not to mention she didn't have the slightest idea where Serica was; the tigress had been escorted off by Aluro with Red Eye and Vultureman in tow. Which meant Cheetara needed Lynx-O to wake up and locate Serica before they could attempt escape.

_And the worst of it all is,_ she thought, _there's really no way the other Thundercats can get into Dark Side. With Lynx-O here and the Thunder Strike on the other side of the Forest of Mists, there's absolutely no way we can get help. At least with Lynx-O, Serica and I will be able to walk through the Forest of Mists, even if it takes days._

Her head snapped up at Lynx-O's sudden groan. He was laying down on the opposite side of the cell, and she leapt over to him as soon as he started moving. "Lynx-O, are you alright?"

He sat up, gasping and holding his hand to his chest. "I think… Amok cracked one or more of my ribs. It doesn't feel like they're broken, but it certainly hurts when I breathe."

"Let me see." She reached out and put her hand beside his, their fingers just barely touching. She blinked in surprise. _Eh…?_

"Did the Luna-taks and Mutants get all of us?" he asked her after a moment.

"No. They overlooked Ater, and Tug Mug threw Venenum into the middle of the Baoful Swamp in rage; I don't know how either one of them are doing. I don't know _how,_ but they got Serica as well as you and me, but they're not keeping her in the cells with us. She's under Aluro's spell… and she still has her portfolio."

Lynx-O winced as Cheetara checked all of his ribs; it was hard to tell what he was wincing at. "So not only can they get their hands on all that information she's got, we can't expect help now that the other Thundercats have no way of getting into Dark Side."

"Yeah, that's right."

"I seriously hope Serica's information is encrypted…."

"It probably is." She sighed in annoyance. _I could kill Panthro for throwing out all those fog lamps. "With the Luna-taks gone and us going to New Thundera, we won't need them anymore," he said. I'll bet he's eating those words right now._

* * *

"What was that you said about us not needing the fog lamps anymore, Panthro?" Lion-O asked, trying hard not to yelp as Venenum nearly crashed into another outcropping of rock. Again.

"So I was wrong, already!" Panthro replied from the opposite pod. "And I still think it was a stupid idea to let Venenum have at the controls to the Thunder Strike!"

"We are getting sere, are we not?" was the poisoner's nasty reply. She sat in the cockpit, her scarf wrapped around her entire face so that she couldn't see. Her fingers pranced over the Braille board, far more hesitant than Lynx-O's would've been, and pressing the wrong button more than once. "I hab not damaged sa Sunder Strike beyond repair." There was another bang of metal scraping against rock. "Oops, wrong one…."

"No, you've only damaged it enough that it'll take me a week to fix it!" Panthro did yelp as his pod scraped the side of the cavern wall. "WILL YOU BE CAREFUL?"

"It is not my faurut. Rynx-O makes zis rook easy."

* * *

Luna tapped her riding crop against her hand, staring morosely at the dead computer screens of Sky Tomb. "I could _kill_ Bragg," she groaned, ignoring Jackalman as he mopped the floor. "Being evil for the sake of being evil just isn't as satisfying anymore."

Slythe nodded in agreement. "It's almost an insult, yes-s-s? Not to mention it s-s-seems to have me thinking of things differently. S-s-such as if that female Thunderian wasn't killed, we could ask her what the hell it was-s-s she threw at us that only knocked out us Mutants-s-s! Part of me s-s-suspects it was not as s-s-strong as it was intended to be, as if it had not reached it's-s-s full potency."

"Well, perhaps her tiger friend will know. What's taking those three so long to interrogate her, anyway? With Aluro controlling her, it's not like she's going to be that difficult."

Slythe rolled his eyes. "You have to ask, Luna? Three males, one complacent female—"

She smacked her head. "Ask a dumb question, get a dumb answer…."

Jackalman paused in his mopping. "Computer geeks can have sex?" he asked with the complete innocence of a moron.

Slythe and Luna just stared at him for about a minute before the former said flatly, "Go back to mopping floors-s-s, Jackalman."

Amok looked completely bamboozled. "What's sex?"

"Nothing you need to know about, Amok," Luna told him. She turned to the door. "And two of the three have finally returned! It took you long enough. You had better have more than just information of the sexual life of that female!"

"Of course we do," Vultureman said calmly as Aluro snickered, Serica leaning against him as if tired. The Mutant cleared his throat and shuffled the papers he had in his hands. "The first order of business: the female's sexual experience is extremely high, so much so that the three of us—"

"I DON'T WANT TO HEAR ABOUT HER SEX LIFE!" Luna screeched. Only Amok _didn't _wince in pain. "WHAT IMPORTANT INFORMATION WERE YOU ABLE TO GET FROM HER?!"

Aluro chuckled. "You're not going to believe this, Luna, but this pretty female here is nothing less than a spy that obeys no one but the Lord of the Thundercats. Everything in that enormous portfolio she had was highly classified information, documentation of every betrothal contract and partnership deal in the past thirty-five years, and a laptop filled with details on every criminal ever recorded in history. Most everything is coded or written in Thunderian or even both, of course, but Red Eye was able to break open some of the files, and is currently in process of translating copies of some of the more interesting-looking documents she had."

Luna couldn't believe her ears. "A spy? Are you serious? How did we overlook her for all those years?"

"That's what Red Eye's trying to figure out now," Vultureman answered, "though my guess is that she wasn't on Third Earth. Even with Aluro using the full power of his Psych Club on her, the female is loyal enough to her job that getting the bits out of her that we did was nearly suicide."

Slythe looked Aluro and Vultureman up and down. "Now that you mention it, the two of you do look a little beaten up. I guess I'm s-s-so used to it by now that I don't notice it until s-s-someone points it out."

* * *

Chilla was stalking down the halls of Sky Tomb, straight towards the dungeons. She didn't care if no one knew where she was going or what she was up to. If Luna and Slythe wanted to get information out of the tigress, that was their business. If Tug Mug and Monkian had decided to get serious enough in their chosen professions to practice with each other, she certainly didn't want to watch.

And she knew exactly what Red Eye, Aluro, and Vultureman would be doing with the tigress while interrogating her. The pigs.

She wanted to murder something. _Anything._

She felt a nasty smile start to spread on her face. _No, not just anything,_ she thought. _Thundercats. I want to kill Thundercats. I want to break them to pieces, make them cry and beg for mercy, make their lives utterly miserable. Beat them to death with their own weapons._

Her steps quickened, carrying her to the prison cell that contained Lynx-O and Cheetara.

* * *

"I think you're fine for now," Cheetara told Lynx-O, "but as soon as we get back to the Lair, we're going to have to check you over thoroughly. I assume that either Venenum or Serica must have medical knowledge, otherwise they wouldn't make very good assassins… assuming the former is still alive and we can get the latter away from Aluro."

"I'm sure Venenum is fine—she doesn't strike me as the type to die that easily—and we've gotten people freed from Aluro before." Lynx-O frowned. "Do you hear that, Cheetara?"

She listened carefully, trying to figure out what it was he heard. Finally, her ears picked up the scuffing noises, as if someone were crawling slowly through uncertain territory. "What in the world…?"

Lynx-O flinched, as if startled. "The air ducts! It must be Ater!"

Sudden thoughts of what the Luna-taks might do if they got their hands on Ater caused Cheetara to leapt to her feet, quickly locating the vent for the air ducts, and run over to it. Sure enough, just as she pried the screen off, the scuffling took on a more direct approach, and Ater soon hopped through the hole to land by Cheetara's feet. "Ater! What do you think you're doing? You—"

He jumped up and threw his arms around her waist, clinging to her as if she might disappear. She blinked in surprise, which turned into worry when she realized he was crying. "Ater…?"

"I lost Daddy," he whimpered. "I don't want to lose my friends, too…."

Lynx-O slowly stood up, one hand against his injured ribs to alleviate the pain, and went to kneel beside Ater. The boy was so distressed that he barely noticed when the older man put a hand on his shoulder. "Ater, what are you talking about?" he asked soothingly. "Help Cheetara and I understand what you mean."

Ater told them alright, but not in a way anyone could've predicted. Like a blast, the psychic wave ripped through Sky Tomb from Ater's mind, causing both Cheetara and Lynx-O to cry out in pain. Nor were they the only ones; Aluro, with his own psychic abilities, received the wave at full force, shouting in agony and clasping his hands to his temples, while Chilla shrieked and fell to her knees. Everyone else, though they did not see nor hear what followed next, could still _feel _what had happened.

* * *

**Cheetara was Ater, though she didn't know how that was possible. Not until she realized she was watching a memory. A very strong one, the type that no one wants to remember.**

**His father ran through the alleyways, holding tightly onto Ater's hand, not letting go. The boy didn't remember how, but for some reason they were being chased by Mutants. Ater was frightened, but it was mostly because his father was frightened.**

**His father broke down a door and they ran into the building, picking up Ater at one point so he could run faster. Before he knew it, he ran into a room that there was no other way out of. He swore, and shoved Ater into a cabinet. "Stay there, Ater!" he said, shutting the door. "No matter what you hear, stay there, be quiet, **_**and don't come out!"**_

**Ater obeyed, but not willingly. He heard the door to the room crash open and quietly moved to one of the cracks between the doors of the cabinet to peak out. That was probably the stupidest thing Ater had ever done—or would ever do.**

"**We saw you with a child!" one reptilian shouted at the Luna-tak, breaking his jaw with a punch and shoving him to the floor. "Where is it?"**

**Instead of answering, he spat at the Mutants. This only gave them an excuse to start kicking him, and it wasn't long before they pulled out their weapons and started beating him. As horrible as it was, Ater found he couldn't tear his eyes away, even when blood started splattering all over the floor and Mutants in splashes, not droplets. They never hesitated, not even when the shouts of pain escalated into dying screams.**

**It seemed to be an eternity later, though it could not have been more than two or three minutes, before the door crashed open and Venenum flew into the room. Upon the sight of all the blood, a short sword materialized out of nowhere, and she proceeded to slaughter the Mutants seemingly without a second thought. By the time she was finished, it looked as if the room had been repainted—badly—in blood red. Aequo and Serica followed, but too late to stop Venenum's rampage.**

**Venenum closed her eyes briefly, then headed towards the cabinet immediately. She threw open the doors, reached in, and yanked Ater out before he even realized what was happening. Ater stared at his father in horror as Aequo knelt beside him and started examining him. "Daddy?" Ater whimpered, clinging onto Venenum, hoping that the worst was not true.**

**Serica glanced over, her look angry, though it was impossible to say at what. "Venenum, get him out of here. **_**Now."**_

**Venenum didn't need to be told twice. She picked up Ater, turned on her heel, and walked out of the room at a brisk pace, carrying him with her. Her grip on him was so tight that he couldn't pull free, no matter how hard he tried. "Daddy?" he shrieked. **_**"Daddy? DADDY?!"**_

* * *

Slythe shook his head. "What in the world _was_ that? It felt like… I can't even _des-s-scribe_ what that felt like!"

"Amok's brain hurts," Luna's steed said miserably.

Vultureman had perhaps recovered the fastest, and from the look on his face, he was processing all the information he had as fast as he could. "It must've been some sort of psychic blast. Whoever let it out, only those with a strong connection to the person or psychic abilities of their own were able to get the whole picture. The rest of us would've only been left with the leftover feelings."

"Psychic abilities?" Luna looked over at Aluro. "You're the closest we've got to that, Aluro. What does it mean?"

Aluro started chuckling. "It means, Luna, that we have a _stowaway_ on board Sky Tomb… and a rather _unique_ one considering what we usually get."

None of them had yet noticed that Serica had disappeared.

* * *

Cheetara's brain felt like it had been taken out, flattened with a rolling pin, and then carefully put back. From the look on Lynx-O's face, he felt the same way.

Ater still clung to her, though his sobbing had quieted down some. "Ater," Cheetara said slowly, not quite understanding what had just happened, but not about to dismiss it as the irrational fears of a child yet either. "Were you afraid that was going to happen to us?"

Ater nodded.

Lynx-O's ears twitched. "She's alive, Ater, and that blast you sent out must've woken her up from Aluro's trance. I can hear her running this way as fast as she can. I think you managed to scare the living daylights out of her."

Cheetara knelt in front of Ater and looked him in the eye. "Ater… while all the Thundercats might not exactly have the _best_ opinions of these Mutants and Luna-taks, they've shown _far_ more restraint than the Mutants that murdered your father did. I'd believe a lot of rotten things from them, but certainly not such cold-blooded murder on that scale."

"But one of them threw Venenum in that poisonous water," Ater sniffed.

"Not with the intention of killing her, Ater, I'm sure of it. And besides, even as poisonous as that water is, I don't think it would really do more than make Venenum a little sick, she's so immune to poison. At the very worst, she got a little water-logged and probably had to cough up water for a while once she got out, but I'm sure that she's fine besides that."

Lynx-O stood up. "Cheetara!"

Cheetara followed suit, quickly moving herself between Ater and the door to the cell. "How long have you been there, Chilla?"

Chilla didn't answer; in fact, she acted as if she didn't see Lynx-O or Cheetara at all. Her full attention was on Ater, and it was impossible to figure out what she was thinking from the blank look on her face. Not saying anything, she unlocked the door, pulled it wide open, and threw in Cheetara's bo staff and Lynx-O's light shield. "Get out of here," the ice woman finally said after a moment. "Just leave." Without another word, she turned her back on them and walked away.

Cheetara slowly stepped forward, confused. She poked her head out of the cell, watching Chilla as she walked off. "I have absolutely no idea what just happened," she said, picking up the weapons and handing the light shield to Lynx-O, "but I'm not about to argue with it." She looked at Ater, and noticed that the look on his own face was very similar to the one Chilla had.

The sound of running footsteps broke the silence, and before long Serica came into view. "Ater!" The half-breed ran straight over to her and clung to her like a leech. "Thank Jaga, you're okay… I was seriously worried when you blasted that memory again…."

"Where's your portfolio, Serica?" Lynx-O asked. "If the Luna-taks or Mutants have it, I don't think it would be wise to leave it in their possession."

Serica's eyes twinkled, as if a sudden love of violence was born in her at that moment. "I know _exactly _where it is."

* * *

Overpowering Red Eye to get the portfolio back was actually not that hard at all for two Thundercats and a spy. All they could think of was to get the portfolio, grab any documentation that had been taken out, and get out of Sky Tomb. It never occurred to them to check and see if he'd made copies of what he'd found inside of it.

It was almost a given that there was no way they'd be able to make it to the exit without running into some of the other Luna-taks or Mutants at least once. What they had _not_ expected was that not only were they all blocking the door (Red Eye obviously not there, and Chilla conspicuously missing), it was _Aluro_ who acted as the leader.

"Where's the boy, Thundercats?" the psychic Luna-tak asked, stepping forward. "Give him over and we'll let you leave."

"Boy?" Serica responded, stepping forward and glaring back at him. "What boy?"

"Don't play stupid with us, woman! We know you have a Luna-tak child with you! He belongs with his own kind, so hand him over."

"I have never been inclined to do anything as idiotic as that. I could care less what you do to me, but you will leave him out of this."

"I think not. I won't allow a child of my race to be raised by Thunderians of all things, and certainly not Thundercats! Now, _hand over the boy!"_

"And again, I say, 'no'."

Aluro held out his psych club, but didn't use it just yet. "You're the type that just has to make things difficult, aren't you? Leave the boy here, and this whole situation won't have to come down to a fight."

"No, you're the type that just can't take 'no' for an answer. By the way, if it comes to a fight, do you really think you can win?" She smiled viciously. "You caught me off guard once before. Do you really think you'll be able to do it again?"

Aluro hesitated, which was precisely enough time for the Thunder Strike to come crashing through the walls. Literally. It looked as if it had been through a meteor storm and barely survived.

"That's impossible!" Luna screeched. "No one can fly that through the Forests of Mists except Lynx-O!"

Lion-O jumped out of the left pod and landed between the Luna-taks and their prisoners, drawing the Sword of Omens along the way. "The Thunder Strike is not like the Sword of Omens, Luna. While the Sword of Omens can only be used by those who are good, the Thunder Strike can be driven by anyone… albeit badly, in the case of Venenum…." The last bit was muttered, so that the Luna-taks couldn't hear.

Tug Mug screamed like a little girl and pointed at Venenum as she rearranged the scarf around her face. _"I killed you!"_

Venenum scoffed. "You are going to hab to try harder san zat, Butter Baru."

"Get them!" Slythe shouted. "Don't let any of them get away!"

That was easier said than done. With Lynx-O injured and Ater to keep out of the way, the Thundercats knew immediately they were outnumbered, and so were able to fight twice as hard to get away. The Luna-taks and Mutants, meanwhile, had lost their nerve to fight after Ater's psychic wave had ripped through Sky Tomb, though the Thundercats neither knew nor understood that. It wasn't long at all before the Thundercats were able to send the Luna-taks and Mutants running for cover, then leap into the Thunder Strike and take off….

….with Lynx-O at the controls and Venenum courteously knocked unconscious and thrown into the trunk by an enraged Panthro.

* * *

Jackalman wandered through the halls, determined to do as Slythe told him so that the Mutants would have no reason to beat the crap out of him again. He'd already found Red Eye and revived him, telling him what just happened. Chilla, however, was turning out to be much harder to find at the moment.

_I wonder if things might've turned out a little differently if she'd been there to ice those idiots, _he thought, poking his nose threw all the doors and trying to find her. _I could kill Captain Bragg; I shouldn't be glad the Thundercats got away…._

He stopped in the middle of the hall, his ears perking up. He heard something, but he was pretty certain it wasn't Chilla. Still, his curiosity got the best of him, and he tiptoed towards the noise to find out what it was.

It _was_ Chilla.

Jackalman stared in shock; she was sitting in the corner of the room, curled up into the fetal position, weeping. She didn't look up as he approached, but she stiffened, as if she could sense him. "Chilla, are you okay?" he asked timidly.

There was a moment's pause before she shook her head, refusing to look at him.

Jackalman thought quickly. He didn't know too much about crying females, but he figured she might consider it a weakness, and _that _he understood pretty well. "Do you want me to stand at the door and keep everyone away until you're ready to come out?"

Another pause. This time she nodded, slowly.

He quickly did as she wished him to, figuring that she'd be the one to come up with an explanation later of why they had taken so long. He paused only once, when she asked unexpectedly, "Have you ever just realized you've turned into your own worst nightmare?"

He stared at her, not having the slightest idea what it was that was going through her head at the moment. "I don't know. That's never happened to me."

"It just happened to me," she replied very quietly. "And I don't like it one bit."

* * *

"To think we just went through all that trouble for nothing!" Vultureman complained, crocheting furiously. "It almost feels like there was absolutely no point in escaping and trying all of this!"

"Perhaps." Luna looked over at Aluro. "I only barely saw the boy, Aluro. What did you get from him?"

"He's half Luna-tak alright," Aluro replied, "as well as half Thunderian, which would explain why the Thundercats wouldn't want to give him up. They're annoying that way."

Monkian scratched his head. "Are you sure? He didn't look like your kind, Aluro."

Aluro nodded a little, as if he'd expected someone to say that. "The Luna-tak parent was half-Psychic and half-Ice. I'd bet all my money on it."

Luna tapped her riding crop against her hand. "Half Ice… didn't you have an affair with an Ice Luna-tak that resulted in a child before we were banished from the moons of Plun-Darr? Not Chilla, but her friend there. I believe the result was a boy child."

Aluro looked insulted. "First of all, I would be _horrified_ to find out any son of mine bred with a Thundarian. Second of all, that's too random of a chance for that child with the Thundercats to be my grandson. Not to mention the stuff of fanfiction."

Slythe glared over at the door as Chilla and Jackalman walked in. "What the hell took you so long, Jackalman?"

Jackalman pointed at Chilla, terror written on his face, while she gave Slythe a look that could've curdled milk. "My business is none of your concern, reptilian!" she snarled. "Besides, if Jackalman got to Red Eye first, then where is _he?"_

"Waiting for everyone to be gathered in the same spot," the Luna-tak in question said with a grin as he walked in from another doorway. He was holding a few papers in his hands, very much delighted, as if he were a little boy that had discovered a stash of gold coins from the tooth fairy. "It took me a while to translate this into Plundarian, but it was worth every minute. Come and take a look at the peace treaty drawn up between the deceased Thundercat Lord Claudis and King Veterator of Plun-Darr."

Their curiosity nabbed immediately by that statement, everyone rushed forward to crowd around Red Eye and read the treaty. It took several minutes—mostly because Monkian was a very slow reader—but by the time they were all finished, they could only stare at the contract in complete shock. Even Chilla seemed to be temporarily unable to breathe.

"They plan to seal a treaty… with _that?"_ Luna said aloud after there had been several minutes of silence. "I… am completely… _baffled…."_

Slythe slowly started to chuckle. "S-s-something just occurred to me…." Glad when he saw he had everyone's undivided attention, he explained. "Just because being good is boring, that does-s-sn't mean we have to be evil towards those that are good. It's s-s-still being evil to help and then _betray_ evil people in the name of good, yes-s-s? I don't fores-s-see one Warlord Komodo looking forward to this-s-s… and it would be _ever_ so much fun to arrange it s-s-so that he's on the losing team."

While everyone in the room had a grudge against the Thundercats, each and every one of them also had a personal vendetta against the reptilian named Komodo. As the nasty smiles grew, Luna stared chuckling as well. "Well, we have to give Good the credit of imagination. Let's use our heads to perplex some people. After all, there's no better lie than only _part_ of the truth, now, is there?"

* * *

"My Thunder Strike," Panthro moaned, looking at what was left of his flying machine. It wasn't as favored as his precious Thunder Tank, but as it was his own invention for Lynx-O, it was still one of his babies. "It's going to take me a week to fix this!"

"I can help!" Ater piped up. "Then it won't take a week!"

Panthro looked doubtful, but he sighed and handed Ater a tool. "Alright, then, Kid. Let's get to work." He stalked towards the Thunder Strike, muttering under his breath all the things he was going to do to Venenum once he got his hands on her.

She, meanwhile, had completely disappeared, and was no doubt hiding until she felt Panthro's temper was soothed.

Lion-O watched with a sigh as Ater happily followed Panthro. "Sometimes I wonder if he'd prefer people were enslaved before his machines destroyed." He looked over at Serica. "With the Luna-taks and Mutants loose on Third Earth again, this is going to cause problems."

Serica was carefully rearranging all of her papers nearby, her back to the wall and glancing up on occasion to make sure no one got too close to her. "Don't just look at the down side of things, Lion-O," she replied. "Expect the best, prepare for the worst, and you'll be ready for anything as reality will be somewhere in between." She snickered "You never know, they might have other plans, and only stopped over for one last fling."

The communicator sitting beside Lion-O started beeping. "Mandora to Lion-O," the voice said once before Lion-O grabbed it.

"Lion-O here, Mandora. What is it?"

"You're not going to believe this, but the Luna-taks and Mutants have turned themselves in. All of them. Willingly. They just came straight back to Way Out Back and said that this time they were going to stay until I determined they were ready to leave!"

Lion-O stared in shock at the communicator, glancing over at Serica a few times. Panthro had paused in his complaining to listen in. "You're sure it's them?"

"Positive. I did fingerprint checks and everything just to make sure. It's them alright."

"Perhaps they're up to something?"

"That's what _I_ thought, but I'm so distrustful of them all that I used a lie detector on them… and they're all telling the truth! I have no idea what to make of it!"

"Perhaps Captain Bragg did better than any of us might've expected…." Panthro said, half to himself.

"But… why'd they come back to Third Earth?" Lion-O asked.

Mandora's response cleared up nothing. "They said they just wanted to have one last evil fling. Again, I used the lie detector on them, and they're all telling the truth."

"Something screwy is going on here," Serica muttered. "I was just joking about that…."

"I really can't think of anything else to say, Lion-O. I was informed that I needed to call you and let you know that the Luna-taks and Mutants are once again in custody… but this is just… weird. Either Captain Bragg did a better job than even he thought, or they're up to something that even the lie detector can't pick up on."

Lion-O thought carefully for a moment. "Understood, Mandora. We'll stay on our toes on this end; once they're released, let us know, and we'll help you keep an eye on them."

* * *

Cheetara walked into the control room at the Tower of Omens, humming quietly to herself. Lynx-O stood at the main controls, running the usual routine check; his ears only twitched a little at her step, but other than that he acted as if she wasn't there.

She stopped beside him and asked, "So how is everything out there?"

"Aside from yesterday's incident, everything is quiet," he replied. "It's peaceful for the moment."

"How are your ribs? I'm somewhat doubtful about Serica's skills at medicine…."

"She did a fine job. It'll hurt a little when I breathe for the next month or so, but as long as I don't put too much stress on myself, I'll be in good health."

"That's good." She slowly leaned forward until her lips were only a few inches from his ear and whispered softly, "You never did tell me what your name was."

Lynx-O froze in shock. For a moment, he looked as if he didn't know whether or not he wanted to laugh or be thoroughly embarrassed, his face turning red at the indecision. Finally, he seemed to decide that "amused" was the best bet, and asked with a slight smile, "How did you figure it out?"

"When we were in the prison in Sky Tomb, while I was checking your ribs to see if you were okay, our fingers touched. It was brief, but after what happened in Dream World, I could never forget the feel of your hands."

His ears flicked a little uncertainly. "Is that a good thing?"

She kissed his cheek. "Does that answer your question?"

Hesitantly, he reached out to take her hand, and she obliged him by linking her fingers through his. "I'm afraid I'm not as young as some of the others," he told her, "and therefore not as confident in myself as I once was."

"You are perfect just the way you are, Lynx-O," she told him, "and I would take you over any over-confident youngster a million times over."

To that, he could say nothing, but did smile gently in her direction.

* * *

Cheetara opened her eyes. For a moment, she didn't have the slightest idea where in the world she was, and sat up in shock. She stared at her surroundings, taking in the beautiful scenery. She was in the middle of a brightly lit forest, sitting upon a carpet of thick green grass spotted with flowers. Up in the sky, instead of a sun, the Eye of Thundera glowed like a star, shining its luminosity upon everything.

Then a thought crossed her mind, and she closed her eyes again, pretending she couldn't see. The sounds, the scents, the feelings….

_I'm in Dream World!_ she thought, her eyes opening wide as she jumped to her feet.

Uncertain what she should do, she hesitated. As she did so, Ater burst through the underbrush. "Cheetara!" he chirped, latching onto her waist in a surprise hug. "Can you see the Dream World, now? Someone told me you could!"

"I can." Her eyes sparked as she smiled down at Ater. "Do you know where our friend is, Ater? The one who couldn't talk?"

Ater smiled back at her, and for a split second she got the impression that he had intended for something to happen all along. "He can talk now," was the half-breed's reply, his sheer innocence wiping away all thoughts of conspiracy. "He's over that way, calling for you. I think it's important."

Cheetara didn't wait another second, shooting off in the direction Ater had indicated. "Lynx-O!" she called out. "Lynx-O, where are you?"

"Cheetara!" was the response she got, and it caused her to hurry, pushing away bushes and jumping over rocks and ditches to get to him faster. When she burst into a clearing, she stopped and watched as he stumbled into it as well.

It was no wonder Ater had not recognized Lynx-O right away; Cheetara barely did. Though older in reality, in Dream World Lynx-O was young, with a full head of hair, and golden eyes that could see as well as she did. There were no wrinkles, no sign of age, no white in his hair or beard; he could've easily been no more than two or three years older than she was.

She smiled at him as they stepped towards each other. "See?" she giggled, reaching up to run her fingers through his hair. "I've got something perfect right here."

He smiled down at her as he took her in his arms. "I could never compare to you, Cheetara."

* * *

Ater watched the pair with a big grin, looking over his shoulder at his companion. If Lion-O or Snarf had been there, they would've wanted to know what in the world the Guardian of the Book of Omens was doing with the half-breed. "See? I did it, just like you asked. Put them off guard so they could find each other."

The Book Guardian's fire surged briefly in pleasure. "Yes, Ater. You've done a good job."

"Do I get my wish now?"

"Yes … but I feel I must remind you: I can only do it for this one night, _never again._ You will be terribly hurt when you wake up. Later on you will be tempted to ask me to do it again, but you must understand that I cannot. Doing it this one time is coming perilously close to breaking rules you could never comprehend."

Ater nodded solemnly. "I know it'll hurt, but I want this wish very badly. I promise that even though I might think of asking you again, I won't, no matter how much I want to. Just for this one night, please?"

The Book Guardian made a sound that could've been a sigh of regret. "Then your wish will be granted, Ater, and I hope it will not hurt you as much as I know it can. So, turn around."

Ater did so, his little face breaking into a large grin.

The man he faced stood ten feet away from him. He smiled back at the boy and squatted low with his arms open. "It's been such a long time, Ater," he said. "Come give me a hug!"

"Daddy!" Ater cried happily, running into his father's arms.

Snarf paused in his cleaning, looking at the Sword of Omens in surprise. The Eye of Thundera had not opened in alarm, but it made a purring noise, as if immensely pleased with itself. "If I didn't know any better," Snarf told it, "I'd say you were up to something."

The Eye of Thundera merely replied with something that could've been chuckling. If Snarf were able to hear it's thoughts, he'd discover something like this:

_If only you knew, faithful creature,_ it thought. _I'd say my plans went on better than I could've thought otherwise._

* * *

**End of Part Two.**

And now for the Random Notes that I'm sure nobody will _want_ to read, especially as there seems to be more of them for this part than the last one….

Hiragana and kanji: While I used sign language as a comparison for the difference between hiragana and kanji, another example of comparison is the difference between Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, etc…) and Roman numerals (I, II, III, IV, V, etc…). I've also seen hiragana compared to an actual alphabet. Make of that what you will.

The Luna-taks and Mutant's occupations: If anyone is offended by my ideas, please forgive me. I started watching Thundercats in '97, starting with all the episodes _after_ "Return to Thundera Part 2," so I'm afraid I rather view the Luna-taks and Mutants as villains opportune for comedy. However, from the perspective of someone who loves the play _Macbeth,_ I really do think Slythe would play the part of Macbeth really well. X3

"Artistic license": Have you ever talked to a child and he/she suddenly said something that was ten years too old for him/her? I figured Amok must have those moments on occasion.

Aluro and Vultureman's movie: The movie in question is called _Suicide Club (Suicide Circle),_ and unless you've a strong stomach, a love of watching things die, or a really screwed up sense of black humor, don't watch it. And yes, it opens up with over 50 school girls throwing themselves under the wheels of an oncoming train. I am dead serious.

Chilla's "happy pills": Again, please forgive me, but I always got the impression Chilla would sooner be thrown into a vat of acid than tolerate Mandora's presence for too long. Since I obviously couldn't let that happen, I had to think of a way to keep my favorite Luna-tak from killing my least favorite cop. Pity.

_My Little Pony_ Bushwoolie: For those of us overly-feminine types that actually watched this show, even we hate the Bushwoolies. Think of a brightly colored fur ball about the size of Snarfer's head, add big egg-sized eyes and arms, give it a personality so obedient it makes a Bruteman look like a college graduate, and you've got yourself a Bushwoolie. All in all, the Bushwoolies were so weak, I'm surprised they weren't "accidentally" stomped out of existence by the ponies. For someone to be beaten up by a Bushwoolie in a fistfight… "pathetic" just isn't strong enough of a term to describe that.

Daft Punk: Specifically, the album "Discovery".

Hellsing: For those that don't know, this is a rather violent vampire manga that has become rather well known among Anime fanatics. I don't know about anyone else, but I enjoy it because it is one of the few storylines where everyone is either a villain or an anti-hero. No good guys in Hellsing, which makes it perfect for the nasty Venenum.

Warlord Komodo: Not a character of my creation, cross my heart and hope to die. He is mentioned in Thundercats Annual 1989 (the one with just Lion-O on the cover) on page 22 in "The Chronicles of Plun-Darr." His name is actually supposed to be "K-K-Komodo", but a stuttering evil villain just doesn't quite work for me. While it says that he was once the leader of the Mutants before Slythe took over, I'm modifying the story a little bit to say that he's the head of the army, second only to Rataro. And, yes, I do have him appear later on.

Ater's trick and psychic blast: I thought at some point, "If Aluro can convince an enemy that he is invincible, would he also be able to convince that enemy that he's not even there?" I think he could, which is why Ater can do it. As for Ater's psychic blast, I realize that brings him one step closer to a Gary Stu, but it seemed to me a better way to explain his past without him trying to tell a story while bawling his eyes out. Oh, and when a person close to someone dies unexpectedly, that one really does become paranoid about all of his or her other family and friends. I've been there… technically I'm _still _there. It sucks.

Totem of Dera: Okay, someone explain this to me: wasn't the Totem of Dera said to be lost in the Baoful Swamp because "it would take years of sifting through that muck" to find it? And not a few episodes later, it shows up among the Treasure of Thundera in "The Last Day," and then never appears again? WTF? And maybe it's just me, but I thought the Baoful Swamp was on Third Earth. How the f*ck did it move from Third Earth to New Thundera for "The Book of Omens"?

Fog lamps: _And why do the fog lamps that Panthro invented never show up again after "Mumm-Ra Lives Part 5"?!_

The Thunder Strike: I just thought it would be funny to have someone other than Lynx-O attempt to fly the Thunder Strike through the Forest of Mists. Note I said "attempt."

Ater's wish: There is absolutely nothing more painful than waking up from a dream where my father is alive again, though I would also give a fair amount to have those dreams every night. I rather picture Ater being close to his father, so I figure he'd want to do the same thing I would in that situation.

**In Spies and Assassins Part Three:**

Baron Tass makes himself even more hated than he already is by having the audacity to make another appearance. As if that weren't bad enough, the only way to get rid of him is for Bengali and Lion-O to find the lost Thundercat that can stop him. The problem is that the only link to her has gone missing… and that's not taking into consideration that the Thundercat has been presumed dead for nearly thirty-five years!


	4. Part Three: Search For Kinyoubi

Wow. I wrote this part a lot faster than I thought I would….

Anyway, you will all have to forgive me as this part comes the closest to being almost entirely about one of my original characters. Or is it two? At any rate, to make up for this oversight, I've gone through Hell and high water to throw in as many secondary characters that showed up throughout the TV series as possible. If nothing else, it will entertain the reader into wondering which part-time character will show up next.

As with the previous installments, there are random notes at the end of this part, and a preview of Part Four. Trust me, I'm trying not to drag this out as long as possible; I'd only intended for it to be about four parts to begin with, and at the moment it looks like it could extend to six. Sorry!

Again, please try not to reveal spoilers in any reviews! I'm just weird that way. Feel free to flame me about that. And before I rattle on about completely nothing for the next five and a half pages, let me quickly swap to the actual story now.

11/26/2008

* * *

**Part Three: Search For Kinyoubi**

Bengali walked into the kitchen, pausing for a moment in surprise. He'd come downstairs with the intention of finding something to snack on before he had to replace Panthro for the night watch, and hadn't expected anyone else to be in the kitchen.

Least of all _her._

As she made no motions that she'd noticed his presence, he didn't move, acting as if he wasn't there. While she might unnerve or even frighten the other Thundercats, Bengali harbored no negative feelings towards her. In fact, the more he silently watched her, the more curious about her he found himself becoming. If she weren't unpredictably dangerous, he'd have approached her long before now.

Finally, as if by pretending he hadn't come she'd hoped he'd go away, Venenum finally glared over her shoulder at him. "What is it?" she snarled.

He shrugged loosely, unintimidated by her. "I only came to get something to eat," he replied walking over to the refrigerator and opening it. He furrowed his brow and looked over at her. "Um… can I ask what you're doing, or are only _you _allowed to ask questions?"

"I am habing a mearu."

"You're having… a meal…." He glanced at what she was eating. "You call eating an entire New York style cheesecake by yourself a meal?"

"Yes. Yes I do."

He looked at the cheesecake, speculating what she'd laced it with this time. He'd almost tried something she'd made before, only to have Serica freak out and scream at him not to touch the casserole with lethal amounts of cyanide. He'd laughed about it later when he was by himself, thinking it was a funny way to find out why Venenum labeled everything she made.

_Well, whatever's in the cheesecake must be something she has the best immunity to,_ he thought. _She's already eaten over half of it by herself._

She was glaring at him again. Her enormous green eyes narrowed at him, but instead of looking away, he concentrated on her scars. She rarely walked around without the scarf over her face, so the few times she did he couldn't resist looking. _I wonder what it was that happened to her, and how long ago it was. Those scars weren't made only last year._ At some point it occurred to him that her glare was radiating anger. He quickly looked back into the refrigerator.

"Your watch is going to begin soon," she said after he'd rummaged through the shelves for a bit. He stood up to look at her again, a fruit in his hand, surprised at the sad tone she'd used to say that. She wasn't looking at him, but rather at what was left of the cheesecake, as if it were somehow responsible for her gloominess.

"Are you alright, Venenum?" he asked softly.

She glanced up at him. If it weren't for the scars crisscrossing on her face, he was certain she'd be described as pretty, and her eyes were such an unusual color of green, as if they weren't natural. "I wiru be fine," she told him. "Go to your watch before Pansro starts compraining."

He hesitated, certain that there was something she wasn't telling him. "Are you sure? You can come with me…."

"No. I hab sings I need to do."

He'd half expected her to say no, but still felt disappointed that she'd not said yes. "Well… if you change your mind, the offer's open all night."

She didn't even look at him as he left the room, glancing at her again and again, but getting no desired results.

* * *

Venenum continued to stare at the cheesecake, the unaltered sweetness of the cream cheese and strawberry sauce still on her tongue. Bengali had probably thought it was poisoned, but for the first time in over two decades she'd decided to eat something that had not been spiked in any way. _He probably pities me,_ she thought, _as no one else around here seems to care for my presence. It is just as well that he doesn't know the truth._ She felt a single tear slowly slip down her cheek and watched as it landed on the table in front of what was left of the cheesecake. _The only ones that'll think to look for me any time soon are Serica and Aequo, but by the time they realize something's wrong, it'll be too late. Which is just as well._

She felt his presence long before his chuckling was audible. It might've been an extremely long time since she'd been this close to him, but he was unmistakable that way. "The time has come to keep your end of the bargain, Venenum," the voice, cracked with centuries of age, said pleasantly.

She stood up, pushing her chair away from the table. "I know that, devil-priest." All evidence of an accent was gone completely, the words as crisp and clear as she'd always known how to speak them properly. She turned around to look at Mumm-Ra, scowling. "Ugh! You're uglier than I remember you being. I'm so glad I only had to see you for a few seconds that last time."

"And you're just as nasty as I remember you being," Mumm-Ra replied. He was in his weak form, the red cloak draping over his emaciated body like a shroud. He did not need to change into his strong form, as he knew she would keep her word. "I'm surprised the Thundercats even let you in the front door. I honestly didn't think they'd be able to tolerate someone like you."

She smiled. It wasn't a very nice one. "Oh? It was all I could do to keep a straight face when the cub mentioned your name. You've been more active around them than I would've guessed from the first time I met you."

He held his hand out towards her. "We have plenty of time for pleasantries later, Venenum. Are you ready to leave?"

"Just a moment." She turned back to the cheesecake and started scoffing it down as fast as she could. The sweetness of it was starting to make her ill, but she thought it would be funny to puke all over Mumm-Ra's front doorstep.

He glanced with surprise at the demolished dessert. "What is that?"

"My last meal."

There was an awkward moment. "You call eating an entire New York style cheesecake by yourself a meal?"

She paused with the fork in her mouth, staring at him in surprise. _Déjà vu?_ She shrugged. "I wanted to have something that wasn't bitter with poison just once, before…." She couldn't finish the sentence, her attention suddenly on only the cheesecake. _Bengali had asked it differently, as if he thought it was funny…. No, I'm thinking too much._

"Well hurry up. I don't have all night."

She nodded, quickly finishing the cheesecake. Licking the remains of the last bite from her lips, she wrapped her scarf around her face once again, hiding the scars that marred it. With a deep breath, she nodded to herself, and took Mumm-Ra's extended hand. "Let's go."

* * *

Of all the annoying things that could've happened the next day, Baron Tass had to make his presence known in the afternoon.

Bengali hated Baron Tass; he couldn't put his finger on it, but he just knew that there was something about the man that couldn't be trusted. Ever. Upon finding out that the Baron needed to speak with the Thundercats on an "important matter", it was all Bengali could do to resist the urge to sneak up on the Baron and "accidentally" throw him out the nearest window. Preferably one above the third floor.

With broken glass sticking out of the ground below.

Lynx-O seemed to sense his intentions, however, and stayed too close to the young tiger for him to do what he really wanted to.

As the rest of the Thundercats gathered in the room (Panthro, Tygra, and Pumyra still on Third Earth and therefore unable to attend), Lion-O gave Baron Tass a stern look and said, "Alright, Baron, you said this was important. Please make this brief as we all have other things we need to attend to." Even though he didn't say anything else aloud, his tone clearly indicated that he didn't think that the Baron's business was nearly as important as those other things.

"Of course, Lord Lion-O," Baron Tass replied, his oily voice making Bengali's skin crawl. He didn't blame the Thunder kittens one bit for scooting their chairs closer to him and away from the Baron. "I promise I will try very hard to keep from dragging this out."

"Get on with it, then," Cheetara snapped, Lynx-O standing behind her chair with his arms crossed. From the barely concealed annoyance on both their faces, the two of them had been in the middle of something neither one had wanted interrupted.

"It has recently come to my attention that the Thunder kittens were abandoned on the front steps of the Cat's Lair as babies almost fifteen years ago," the Baron told them, acting serious. "It came as quite a shock to me, as that is approximately the same time my own twin children were kidnapped."

Bengali felt the hairs on the back of his neck rising. _Whatever it is,_ he thought, _he's lying._

"You see, I have reason to believe that they are my children."

"_WHAT?"_

Everyone's head snapped towards the direction of the air vent, from where the voice had come. Wily Kit just happened to be sitting closest to it, and quickly coughed into her hand. "It just came as a shock to me," she said timidly, as if she'd been the one to shout out in surprise. None of the Thundercats contradicted her, though from the way Lynx-O was casually walking over to the vent, the perpetrator would be in trouble once caught.

Baron Tass smiled. For a moment, Bengali thought the creep knew who had really spoken. Then it occurred to him that the Baron had _expected_ an outburst. _That window accident is looking all the more attractive…._

"I have here all the legal documentation that proves I definitely had children," the Baron continued, reaching over his shoulder for the papers that were handed to him by his secretary Mr. Grubber. "I have the birth certificates for each of them, and if that is not enough, the marriage contract between me and their mother, the Thundercat Kinyoubi, and her death certificate from when she died in childbirth." He placed them on the table and allowed Lion-O to pick them up and look them over. "As you can see, everything is in order."

Bengali tensed up, and probably would've jumped over the table to throw the Baron out the window if Cheetara hadn't placed a hand on his shoulder. "Calm yourself, Bengali," she whispered.

"It appears as if what you say might be true," Lion-O said carefully, placing the papers back on the table, "but I'm sure you'll understand when I say that the other Thundercats and I will have to check into this."

The Baron nodded. "I will do whatever you wish for me to do, even if it's a blood test that you require."

"I have something I wish to ask," Lynx-O interrupted suddenly. "You said their mother was the Thundercat Kinyoubi."

Baron Tass frowned, as if it had only just occurred to him that Lynx-O might have thoughts of his own. "Yes."

"I heard a rumor that she disappeared over thirty-five years ago."

It was Mr. Grubber that answered, stuttering the entire time. "She n-n-never told us why, b-b-but she insisted that she rem-m-main hidden from the public. P-p-perhaps she thought it was sh-sh-shaming for a Thundercat to m-m-marry someone who was not, es-s-specially since she was n-n-not able to m-m-marry the man she l-l-loved."

"Perhaps." Lynx-O didn't sound convinced.

For that matter, after Lynx-O had spoken out, Lion-O didn't look as convinced either. "Give us a few days to figure out what it is we'll do, Baron Tass, before we hand custody of the Thunder kittens over to you. In the meantime, why don't you go about seeing if you can find more solid information that they're your children."

"As you wish, Lion-O," the Baron replied, standing up. He was once again wearing that oily grin of his. "I will gladly await your summons in a few days, hoping that you've come to the correct decision."

After the Baron had left the room, Lynx-O dashed over to the vent, pulled the screen from the wall, and managed to grab Ater before he could scramble back into the ventilation system. "I hope you have a good explanation, boy," Lynx-O growled at the half-breed, holding him off the ground by his scruff.

"Mama made me do it," the boy replied without hesitation.

"Traitor," Serica's voice crackled from the walkie-talkie Ater held in his hand, though her voice held no malice. As she was definitely too large to fit in the ventilation system, the walkie-talkie explained how she was able to listen in and shout in surprise.

"Do you make it a regular habit of spying on even Thundercat business, Serica?" Lion-O asked gruffly.

It was not Serica that replied, but Aequo. "No, but we _do_ make it a business to spy on anyone that's considered to be suspicious. Baron Tass was always second-to-first class priority, even before we left for Plun-Darr. In fact, he was supposed to have a spy assigned only to him, but from the fiasco that evacuating Thundera turned into, we know she didn't make it off the planet before it was destroyed."

"Second to first priority?" Wily Kat said. "Then is it possible that he's lying about Wily Kit and me?" He looked relieved.

"Oh, he's lying alright," Serica told them. "The real problem is, I don't think there's any proof on _our_ side of this fence to confirm it."

Cheetara laced her fingers together. "Thundercat Kinyoubi… I think I remember hearing about her. Thirty-five years ago was long before I became a Thundercat, but if I remember correctly, Panthro would've been in the Lair at that time. He might know something about this."

"And possibly Jagara as well," Lion-O added. "And now that I think about it… Snarf, wouldn't you remember her?"

Snarf nodded. "Yes… but I'm old now, Lion-O, and I wasn't exactly a spring chicken the last time I saw her." He wouldn't look at anyone while he said that, preferring to stare at the floor. "A lot of the details aren't clear in my mind anymore."

Lion-O crossed his arms. "I think it might be necessary for us to get everyone together in the control room and get Jagara, Panthro, Tygra, and Pumyra up on the communicators. The more Thundercats we have in on this, the more information we might be able to string together. Serica, I want your spies there as well."

* * *

"Do you th-th-think it will work, B-b-baron?" Mr. Grubber asked as the duo walked from the Cat's Lair back to their mansion. "We both only j-j-just got out of prison. If the Th-th-thundercats find out we've l-l-lied…."

"But they won't," Baron Tass replied confidently. "A few hundred Thunder-dollars here and there and I can get all the proof that they need from me. I already know they will never be able to find any proof against what I've told them. Once I have the Thunder kittens under my wing, it will only be a matter of time before I can brainwash them into being my wedge for controlling the Thundercats from the inside."

"B-b-but what if they f-f-find Thundercat K-k-kinyoubi?"

"She's been missing for thirty-five years, Mr. Grubber, and the last I saw of her she was distraught enough to commit suicide. She's probably dead by now. It would take a miracle for them to find her, and even then they'd have a very hard time getting her corpse to say anything." He grinned. "Her carcass is no doubt on Plun-Darr, and they'll never be able to get it while it's there."

* * *

"Greetings, Thundercats," Jagara said pleasantly as she appeared on the telescreen, which had split into three sections each for her, Panthro, and Tygra and Pumyra. "It has been a long while." Her gaze happened to fall upon Aequo and Serica. "Oh, you're back from wherever it was Jaga and Claudis sent you!" She looked pleased. "Where are the others?"

Aequo bowed to Jagara. "Pampas and Rubus have long since passed on, the latter leaving only her son behind. Venenum… is being abnormal at the moment…."

"Please forgive me for interrupting, Jagara," Lion-O stepped in, "but the matter is somewhat important."

She nodded. "Of course, Lion-O."

Lion-O quickly summed up the whole meeting for Jagara, Panthro, Tygra, and Pumyra, ending with, "I'm afraid that what Lynx-O's heard is only rumor and Snarf says it's been too long for him to remember any details. Which means that you and Panthro are the only ones that know anything of the Thundercat Kinyoubi, Jagara."

Panthro shook his head. "I was barely eight when she disappeared, Lion-O. All I can confirm is that she _did_ disappear, utterly and completely. Claudis and your mother looked for her for years but never found her."

"Panthro is correct, Lion-O," Jagara added, looking somewhat sad. "There is no doubt in my mind that she died thirty years ago, but I'm afraid there is no dead body to back up my information. The tale Baron Tass has woven is plausible to those that didn't know Kinyoubi personally, but only the word of Panthro and I will not be enough proof to disclaim what Baron Tass has insinuated." She glanced over at the spies. "Have you two seen the documents?"

"I'm looking at them right now," Serica replied, comparing the papers to several that she'd pulled out of her portfolio. "Much as I hate to say it, if these are fake, they're very well done. It could take me four to five days to prove they're false."

"I already know they're false," Pumyra said suddenly. "There's no way he could've been married to anyone."

"Are you sure about that, Pumyra?" Wily Kit asked eagerly. "I might occasionally be curious as to whom my parents are, but I would just as soon neither one of them be Baron Tass."

"I'm positive," the puma replied. "My uncle signed a betrothal contract _twenty _years ago, stating that I was to marry Baron Tass once I was legally old enough and as long as I was still a virgin. It would have been illegal for him to be married _and_ sign a betrothal contract."

"And here's the document stating just as much," Serica added, pulling out a seemingly random paper. "Just as I was thinking about it, too, though I'd forgotten whom his bride was supposed to be…."

"You'll have to prove beyond a shadow of doubt that you're no virgin, Pumyra," Aequo warned. "To consider the document invalid, you have to have had at least three children through separate births, or been with at least five unrelated people besides Tygra. You've got Tyri at the moment, and have only recently gotten pregnant for the second time. As for the lovers, can you bring up that number without difficulty?"

Pumyra didn't reply to that. Panthro, Cheetara, Lynx-O, Bengali, Snarfer, and Snarf did. "Yes," they all said in perfect unison. "Plus Mandora," Cheetara added as an afterthought.

Tygra slowly turned to look at Pumyra, who seemed to be having a difficult time trying to hold back her laughter. "Even the snarfs?" he asked incredulously.

"At least I never did Captain Bragg," she replied with a shrug. "Ask Mandora about _that _sometime."

Lion-O and the Thunder kittens just stared in shock. Aequo seemed momentarily stunned before grinning widely and turning to his companion. "I think your brother found your soul-sister, Serica."

"Shut up," the tigress snapped.

"I can see the scandal that will cause already, though," Jagara told them, sounding as if she was getting a headache. "While that might be a definite way of proving the Baron false, it will also bring up a lot of uncomfortable issues should he be unscrupulous enough to spread the tale around. And if I remember correctly, 'scruples' are an alien notion to Baron Tass."

"So we're going to want to use that as a last resort," Lion-O sighed. "And here I was hoping it would be easy…."

"Too bad Pampas isn't here," Serica said almost casually. "She always wanted to kill that guy."

"_No killing!"_ Lion-O told her firmly, glaring at her.

She shrugged. "I'm not going to argue. Pampas was the bloodthirsty spy, not us."

Lion-O started pacing around the room. "If there was only some way we could—Jaga!" He stared in front of him, as if someone were standing there, telling him something.

"Jaga?" Serica and Aequo, unused to this strange behavior, glanced at each other with concern before the latter asked the Thunder kittens, "Does Lion-O do that often?"

Wily Kat scratched his head. "Um… define 'often'…."

Lion-O suddenly turned around, his eyes bright with confidence. "Serica, Aequo, where's Venenum right now?"

Serica rubbed her nose. "Um… about that…."

"We can't find her," Aequo replied. "We've been looking since nearly midnight."

Jagara started. "That's what you meant when you said she was being 'abnormal'!"

"_Is_ that abnormal for her?" Cheetara asked.

Aequo nodded. "Yes. She's extremely paranoid, and never goes anywhere without making sure Serica or I know where she is. That way, if she doesn't report back on time, we know something's wrong."

"And we know something is _seriously _wrong as she doesn't have any of her equipment, including her communicator," Serica added. "And that we can't find her homing signal anywhere."

"Maybe she's just visiting friends or family?" Panthro suggested.

It was Jagara that replied. "No, not Venenum. Claudis had the spies check into her background the moment we became aware of her presence, but none of them could get anything on her. It was as if she'd just appeared out of nowhere, having no origins. An enigma."

Aequo nodded. "She's also extremely tight-lipped about her past. We can't even come up with a theory. I know you've all seen the scars on her face; she has similar scars all over the front of her body, especially around the wrists and ankles, where chains and manacles would've been. The manacle scars might be from slavery, but the rest of her scars are _not_ whip scars or similar, and they're in the wrong places."

"Great," Panthro said with a sigh. "A complete unknown."

"If you searched for her using everything you needed, how long would it take you?" Lion-O persisted.

Serica shrugged. "If we did nothing else, probably a day. Two at most. Why?"

"Jaga just told me that Venenum is the key to finding Kinyoubi. And if we find her—"

"Then maybe we can prove Baron Tass to be lying without a scandal on our part." Cheetara put her fingers to her lips. "Is that all Jaga said?"

"No. While Serica and Aequo look for Venenum, the rest of you are going to have to keep everything running smoothly. Except Bengali and Snarf; they'll be helping me."

"And what will you be up to?" Lynx-O asked.

Lion-O looked excited, like a child that discovered there might be a fascinating adventure ahead. "Inside the Book of Omens, finding out whatever we can about Thundercat Kinyoubi."

* * *

"I'd rather be looking for Venenum," Bengali growled as he followed Lion-O and Snarf down the hall to the treasure chamber.

"I'm sure you would," Lion-O told him, "but Jaga insisted that it be the three of us that go after Kinyoubi. I don't understand it, but I'm not about to argue. And if we're going to go after Kinyoubi, it only makes sense to know as much about her as possible."

"I suppose…."

Snarf, for his part, was acting quite strange. He normally hated the thought of entering the Book of Omens, but at the moment he was acting almost excited. "I always thought it was strange that we never found her," he was saying, running ahead of Lion-O and Bengali eagerly. "I knew she couldn't be dead!"

Lion-O stopped. "Snarf? I thought you said you couldn't remember anything."

The snarf froze in his tracks for a moment before turning around and saying with dignity, "I said that I was old and that the details would be foggy to me."

Lion-O glanced at Bengali, who shrugged. "Um… okay."

* * *

"No, no, no, no, no!" Snarfer snapped. "I don't care what Lion-O said, I'm not letting any mutant use my equipment, snarfer, snarfer!"

"I thought snarfs were supposed to be devoid of evil," Aequo sighed as the snarf continued to voice his disapproval.

Serica snickered. "There's got to be an exception to every rule, right?" She got down on her knee so that she could look Snarfer at eye level. He stared at her suspiciously. "Is there really nothing at all that we can do to get you to lend us some of your things, Snarfer?" she asked sweetly.

"Nope, nada, not a thing, never-ever!"

Her grin became nasty. "Nothing at all, Lucifer?"

"I said—" He stopped dead in the middle of whatever it was he'd been saying, as if he'd just choked on something nasty. Suddenly, his tone became cheerful. "Why, now that you mention it, there just might be _something,_ snarfer…." He snarled at her and, leaning close to her face, growled, _"Where did you hear that name?!"_

"Lucifer, I'm a spy. You actually have to _ask?_ All I had to do was check your birth certificate."

Snarfer glanced up at Aequo, who smiled charmingly back. "I will let you use my things as long as you promise NEVER to utter that name again, understood?"

Serica was hardly worried about what a pint-sized fur ball could do, but humored him with a smile. "Of course, Snarfer. Whatever you say."

* * *

The Book Guardian hardly seemed surprised that three Thundercats landed at the bottom of the steps upon which it's pedestal was placed. "You've come to ask about the Thundercat Kinyoubi," it said calmly. "I'm glad to see Jaga knew exactly whom to pick for this particular problem."

Bengali, having never seen the Book Guardian before, looked it over carefully and suspiciously. "Then you'll also know he made a mistake in picking me."

"I wouldn't be too hasty to say that if I were you, Bengali," the Guardian told him. "You will see in time why it was that you were chosen, as will Lion-O and Snarf."

"I already know why I'm here," Snarf snapped.

"Not yet, you don't. Not the full reason, anyway."

Lion-O stepped forward. "Since you know why we're here, why don't you tell us what it is we want to know."

The flame inside the Guardian flared for a moment. "No, not what you _want_ to know, Lion-O. What you_ need_ to know. By the time I finish showing you everything you _need_ to know, there will be plenty you will have seen that you never _wanted_ to know. And I know you won't thank me for it, either."

Bengali was starting to get a little annoyed. "Is this going to take a while? The sooner this is over with, the sooner I can help look for Venenum."

"I don't give a rat's ass what's happened to her!" Snarf snapped angrily. "Kinyoubi is a million times better than that crazy female!"

"Sorry, Snarf, but I could care less about some female that disappeared before I was even born! Thundercat or not!"

"And I could care less about a double-crossing, murderous bitch!"

"_Say it again, Snarf, and I'll—"_

"_Stop it!"_ Lion-O shouted at the two of them. "The longer we argue, the longer it'll take for the Guardian to tell us what it is we need to know." He gave Bengali and Snarf each a piercing glare. "And the longer it'll be before we can find either Venenum _or_ Kinyoubi."

Bengali and Snarf pointedly didn't look at each other.

"Oh, this is going to be a joy," the Book Guardian muttered with annoyance. "I foresee more trouble before I'm even halfway done my tale…."

Bengali took a deep breath before looking back at the Guardian. "I'm ready to hear whatever it is you have to tell us, Guardian, even if it's something I might regret knowing later. Right now, I just want to find Venenum again; she could be in serious trouble."

Snarf looked a little ashamed. "I just want to find Kinyoubi," he said quietly. "She's been missing for so long, and it's been years since I had any hope that we'd find her again. I never wanted to believe that she was dead…."

"Then allow me to start at the beginning," the Guardian told them. "You must understand everything before you can go tearing off after either woman, otherwise you will find one… but not the other." The flame spread wide, opening like a curtain inside the Guardian's center. In it, a picture began to form; a medical room, with a bed in the center, and a window nearby. Bengali immediately recognized Aequo on the bed, though the mutant was obviously out cold from the number of injuries that had been left on him. A younger Jaga, his hair still mostly black with youth, stood near the window, looking annoyed. Claudis, also a young man, was beside the bed, helping two women that Bengali did not recognize.

Snarf did, though. "Kinyoubi! Leaena!"

* * *

_Yes. The story starts many, many years ago, a little after Claudis had become the Lord of the Thundercats, while Jaga was still second in command, before Jagara had taken the post as the guardian of the mighty Gyroscope, and after Aequo had been rescued from certain death. It starts at a time when the Thundercats Kinyoubi and Leaena were both still alive._

"_How is he doing, Kinyoubi?" Claudis asked the woman on his right._

_Her long brown hair was loose about her shoulders, several bangs crisscrossing her face like spider webs. She was completely naked except for a pink baldric that wrapped around her hips and left shoulder, a weapon similar to Bengali's hammer on her hip (except it was pink), and her brown eyes bright and innocent._

"_He's doing well, considering that I know nothing of mutant physiology," she told Claudis, straightening up from her examination of the wounded mutant. Even as they watched, she took Aequo's broken arm in her hands, closing her eyes and humming a solitary note. Her hands started glowing green, and as she quickly reset the bone, it was easy to see that the bone was healing at several times its normal speed. "I don't dare Heal him as fast as I would a Thundarian, Claudis. I'm afraid to hurt him, or cause serious damage that I won't be able to repair."_

"_Take as much time as you need, Kinyoubi. I'm just glad to see that his collapse before we got off the ship wasn't fatal."_

"_You don't seriously think it's a good idea to keep him here, do you Claudis?" Jaga asked suspiciously. "It'll be impossible to hide him."_

_Claudis smiled a little. "I'm not going to abandon the mutant that was honorable enough to save my life, Jaga. I've already thought of something, but I will wait until he is awake and well before I broach the subject with him. I think he might make an excellent spy."_

_The other woman, Leaena, was taking off the bandages from Aequo's head. They were ruined, completely soaked with blood, and she wasted no time in carefully cleaning the wound on the mutant's temple before placing her hand there. "It could easily be a month before then, Claudis, even with Kinyoubi and I working as best as we can with him." Her long red hair, thick and flowing, was tied loosely at the base of her neck, and was a start contrast to the green glow that emanated from her own hand to cause the wound to scab over before she started putting fresh bandages on his head. She kept having to pull back the long flowing sleeves of her light blue dress to do so. "We can both only go so long before our Healing powers are drained."_

"_Then it will take a month." He smiled at Leaena, and reached over to brush his fingers against Kinyoubi's cheek. "I have confidence in both of you." He didn't notice the look of hurt in Leaena's golden eyes, as she quickly looked away from him before he could see it._

* * *

_Later that day, Kinyoubi and Claudis were outside, taking advantage of peace and the lovely weather to play like children in an enormous tree. Snarf stood nearby, watching from the cover of the brush, sighing sadly as he saw Claudis manage to sneak up behind Kinyoubi and catch her around the waist. Giggling, she turned in his arms to place a kiss onto his cheek._

_Snarf's ears pricked in curiosity as he heard a sigh nearby that echoed his own. Quietly, he tiptoed over to another tree not too far from his bush, and nearly walked right into Leaena. He looked at her in surprise when he saw that she was silently crying. "Leaena, snarf, snarf! What's wrong?"_

_The lioness looked down at Snarf for a moment before her eyes strayed back to the playing couple. "I'm just being a fool, Snarf," she whispered, "dreaming of something that I know will never be…." She made a soft keening noise in the back of her throat as she slowly slid down the tree to sit at its roots, still watching the couple. Still watching Claudis. "I've known Kinyoubi all my life Snarf, and whether or not we're related, I love her like a sister. I don't dare tell her of the feelings that tear me apart inside. It's not fair to her… and it wouldn't be fair to him."_

_Snarf nodded, understanding what she meant, probably more than she thought he did. "Snarf…. It does hurt to lose someone you care for, doesn't it?"_

"_It hurts more to never tell them… but I don't dare. If I tell him, he'll feel guilty, Kinyoubi might be upset or jealous, and it could cause so much harm to a relationship that I know is working. They would be ripped apart, and he would be free… but it would be my fault. At least this way, only one person will be hurt. Not three or more."_

"_Don't torture yourself so much, Leaena, snarf, snarf…."_

"_I know. Anyone I might tell will inform me that I'm being an idiot, that I should just forget him and go find someone else… but if only they could understand how much I wish I could. How can I turn to another when a small smile from him sends my heart fluttering like a bird? How can I pretend I don't care at all when it rips me to shreds inside every time I see that he's upset or hurt? How can I forget him when the mere thought of touching him is all I need to do anything and everything? When I'm near him, I'm inspired to be my best… but then I see his eyes are elsewhere, and it destroys me inside. And for those eyes to be on my best friend, my possible sister…." She closed her eyes tightly, trying to hold back the tears and not succeeding._

_Snarf glanced back at the couple, quickly looking away when he saw that they were too busy gazing in each other's eyes. "The pain of losing someone you love to someone else you care for…."_

_She smiled a little sadly, opening her eyes and reaching out to scratch Snarf on the head. Normally he complained about this, but she was so obviously miserable that he allowed it. "Poor Snarf… it must hurt you to see that your little Claudis has fallen in love and has no time for you anymore, doesn't it?"_

"_Something like that, snarf, snarf. Yeah… something like that…."_

* * *

"Wait a minute!" Lion-O interrupted. The scene inside the sphere froze, as if it were on pause. A sad tableau of a sad pair. "Kinyoubi wasn't my mother. If she disappeared thirty-five years ago, it would be impossible. I'm only twenty-five!"

"And you would be right," the Guardian replied. "Kinyoubi is _not_ your mother. Leaena is."

Lion-O blinked in surprise, looking back at the picture of the young woman carefully. Now that it was mentioned to him, that sad look did seem vaguely familiar to him from the few memories he had of his mother. "But… wouldn't that have been about ten years _before_ I was born?"

"Yes."

"She… she and Father grew so much older… in such a short time…?"

"Age is like that. I've been told it sucks."

"But… if Leaena's my mother…." Lion-O started thinking carefully. "My father and Kinyoubi seemed to be awfully close. What could've possibly gone wrong?"

The Book Guardian didn't answer right away, as if choosing it's words carefully. "There is a very big difference between a leader and a regular citizen, is there not, Lion-O? Where there are things a leader can do that a citizen cannot, the reverse is also true. Do you understand that?"

"Yes… I think so…." Lion-O's eyes widened slowly, as if something had just occurred to him. "The Lord of the Thundercats is not allowed to choose his own bride, is he?"

"No. He is not. The Sword of Omens chooses for him."

Lion-O held back the negative feelings that simple statement brought up inside him. "Is it alright if I ask why?"

"The Lord of the Thundercats must have a mate that views him as an equal, neither a child nor a master. She must be able to encourage him to do the right thing, but hold him back from being irresponsible and foolish, and he must do the same for her. She must have a personality that compliments his, be strong in the traits that he is weak in, just as he must be the same for her. He must have a woman that is his partner, that is everything he is not."

"But Kinyoubi was a Thundercat. Surely she would've been right for him?"

"No. Kinyoubi did have one serious flaw: she was too protective of those she loved, a trait that bordered on selfishness. If there were even the slightest possibility that Claudis might be harmed, or even Leaena for that matter, Kinyoubi would beg and plead and do everything she could to hold them back from harm. Even if the situation were dire, and could cost the lives of many. Leaena would have ignored her and continued to do what was right; Claudis… would not have.

"For example, if it had been Kinyoubi that was with Jaga when Claudis was rescued from Plun-Darr, she would've done everything in her power to keep him from going back for Aequo. She would've succeeded, Aequo would never have been rescued… and you would've had a far harder time getting free from Rataro's third assault without any casualties. As luck would have it, though, it was _Leaena _that went with Jaga."

Lion-O nodded a little, still not happy with the lack of freedom, but nonetheless agreeing that it made sense. It would not do for the Lord of the Thundercats to be completely devoted to a woman who could easily turn into a tyrant, even though there was no doubt in his mind that a Thundercat could never have stepped down that path. Grune being the exception. "So… the Sword of Omens chose my mother, and not Kinyoubi."

"Yes. There are other reasons it did so, of course, but those are things you will learn about later. Claudis knew that he would have no choice in whom he married, but chose to ignore it, fully confident that the Sword of Omens would choose Kinyoubi. Now, perhaps I shall continue to the day that Claudis and Leaena were married." The picture inside the sphere changed completely, from a warm sunny day, to something entirely different.

"Yes," Lion-O said bitterly. "Do so. I don't care to see the reaction of my father at learning how wrong he was."

* * *

_The day of the wedding was supposed to be one of global celebration, but due to the rain, most of the celebrating was done indoors. It was a heavy rain, the kind that sucked away the daylight and made it as dark as evening._

_Inside the Lair, Claudis and Leaena sat next to each other, accepting the uneasy congratulations that were given to them. Though everyone acted with dignity, it wasn't hard to see that they were very uncomfortable. Even Panthro, only a young boy at the time, could sense that something was wrong. Claudis could barely keep his face neutral; Leaena slipped up more often, her eyes occasionally looking at him hopefully, only to look away in disappointment each time._

_Only Kinyoubi was not there. She was outside, in the rain, standing at the gates, just staring at the Lair as if it had turned into something gruesomely fascinating. The tears that she was no doubt shedding were lost in the downpour, but her heaving sobs were too obvious to ignore._

_Snarf came out of the Lair, heading hesitantly towards the female. Like her, he ignored the rain. "Kinyoubi," he said softly. "Come inside, snarf, snarf. You don't have to join the party, you can go to your room. You can't hear anything in there, I checked, snarf, snarf."_

"_I'll be too easily found there, Snarf," she replied. "I love Claudis very much, and I know him too well. He will not bed Leaena… but I cannot allow him to bed me, either. It is not fair to her, and would only ruin everything I stand for. She is his wife now, and he must stay loyal to her." Her face warped miserably with a particularly strong sob, and she squatted down with a howl of pain, her hands over her ears and eyes shut tight._

_Snarf did the only thing he could think of for the bawling woman, and that was to rub her back soothingly as she cried, hoping that simple gesture would soothe her broken heart. "I can stay here with you, Kinyoubi, so that at least you won't be alone, snarf."_

_She nodded. "Please do, Snarf," she whimpered. "I don't want to be alone right now… but I can't stand that phony celebration, either!" She screamed in either anger or sorrow, it was hard to tell, and slammed her fists into the ground. "It's not fair! _It's not fair! IT'S NOT FAIR!"

**No, it isn't… he should've been mine.**

"_No, it isn't," Snarf agreed, an uncanny echo to the voice in her head. "But don't you worry, Kinyoubi. I'll be here for you as long as you need me, snarf, snarf."_

_She sniffed. "Thank you, loyal Snarf…."_

* * *

_Leaena stepped into the bedroom she was expected to share with Claudis, her emotions in complete turmoil. There was a small part of her that was happy that she'd gotten her fondest wish, her most secret dream… but the rest of her was in agony. Claudis was not happy, and neither was Kinyoubi. _I don't know what the Sword of Omens is playing at,_ Leaena thought, _but none of this should have happened at all. This isn't right.

_She glanced over at Claudis, who'd gone straight to the window. "Kinyoubi wasn't there," he said, as if he didn't realize Leaena was in the room. "I hope she's alright…."_

_Leaena swallowed the tears that threatened to spill. "I'm sure she's fine, Claudis," she told him, hiding the pain with a somewhat careless tone. She started off towards the closet. "She's probably as upset as you are." She heard him turn to look at her, but ignored it, opening the closet instead and stepping inside. "I know you won't want to be with me tonight, so I had an architect come in and construct this for me." At the back of the closet was another door, and she knew that it opened into the closet of the next room. "I moved all my things into the room next door, and swore Snarf to secrecy. No one will be the wiser, Claudis. There's even a lock, so you can be assured of total privacy." She opened the second door and stepped into her own closet. "Goodnight."_

"_Thank you, Leaena," she heard him reply gratefully. She closed the door, and was hardly surprised when she heard him step towards the door and lock it on his side._

_There was no lock on her side._

_She slowly entered her room, closing the closet door behind her, biting her lip as the tears ran down her face so that she wouldn't make any noises he might hear._ I won't let him see me cry, _she thought stubbornly._ He doesn't need that right now. I will do whatever is in my power to at least bring a smile to his face… even if it isn't directed towards me. All I want, more than anything else, is for him to smile….

_She collapsed on the bed, burying her face in her pillow, muffling the wails that ripped themselves from her throat. At that moment, nothing hurt her more than the knowledge that she was married to the only man she'd ever love, but he did not love her._

* * *

_Kinyoubi didn't return to the Lair that night. She couldn't sleep. Instead, she wandered through the city, outside the boundaries, and into the surrounding countryside. Even when dawn broke, she still wandered, further away from the city. Away from Claudis._

_The entire time, Snarf stayed by her side, refusing to leave her alone. She tried a time or two to get him to go back to the Lair, but he just shook his head stubbornly, and continued on._

_She ran into a few other people, but most of them took one look at her blank face and left her alone. Only one idiot baron didn't, begging her to sign some sort of paper for him, that it was important and only a Thundercat could sign it. She did so, if only so that he would leave her alone. She watched him only for a moment, thinking listlessly, _He's obese. He ought to be on Jenny Craig 1-2-3.

**4…5…6….**

_The notion caused something that might've been a smile, but it was gone too quickly to be certain. Lost in her gloomy thoughts, she continued on her way, occasionally reaching down to pet Snarf on the head. As it was just the two of them, his presence was comforting to her._

**I'm being followed.**

_She stopped for a moment, wondering briefly where that thought had come from. It was awfully random._

"_Kinyoubi?"_

_She turned around to see someone step out of the brush nearby. How he could've followed her without her noticing was mind-boggling, as he wasn't exactly inconspicuous. He stuck out like a sore thumb, dressed in his white robe and red sash, with that animal nose that was becoming more of a rarity among Thunderians. The eye patch alone covering his right eye would have been strange enough to turn heads. "I've been looking everywhere for you, Kinyoubi."_

* * *

"That's not possible!" Lion-O stepped forward. "That's Pumm-Ra!"

"Yes," the Guardian replied. "It is Pumm-Ra. I know what you are thinking, Lion-O, but Pumm-Ra _did_ indeed exist at one point. That is part of the reason that Mumm-Ra used his appearance to trick you and the others all that time ago on Third Earth. It is why Panthro and Snarf in particular were hesitant; they had seen him a few times before, but both knew in their hearts that he could never be a Thundercat. If you had known him as well, Lion-O, you would not have been so hasty to believe him, and you would've been immediately put on your guard by his accepting to be a Thundercat."

"Even he knew it, I assume?" Bengali asked, not entirely certain what Lion-O was talking about, but familiar enough to Mumm-Ra's tricks to have a good idea.

"Pumm-Ra enjoyed being a spy, which is why he was so good at his job," the Guardian told them. "He knew that to become a Thundercat meant he would have to give up too many of those evil enjoyments. The real Pumm-Ra would've never accepted the position. That is one of the things that also made him one of the most dangerous spies. Now, shall I continue…?"

* * *

"_I assume Claudis sent you out after me?" Kinyoubi asked, reaching up to hug herself. "I don't feel like returning to the Lair at the moment."_

"_He was not the one that sent me, Kinyoubi," Pumm-Ra insisted, placing a hand on her shoulder. "It was Leaena. She feels horrible about this whole thing, and she wants you to come back."_

_Kinyoubi shook her head. "I'm… still not ready to return to the Lair, Pumm-Ra. I… I feel ill…."_

"_No one said you had to leave your room, Kinyoubi," he said quietly, his gruff voice soothing. "We understand that you're hurt terribly, and we want to keep an eye on you. If you're ill, that gives you all the more reason to lock the door and pretend you don't exist. As an added incentive, Leaena also made me promise not to return without you… but she never said anything about me or the others preventing you from sneaking out again."_

_Snarf reached up and tugged a little at Kinyoubi's wrist. "You really should rest, Kinyoubi, snarf, snarf. Let's please do as he asks."_

_She hesitated for only a moment, but finally sighed and nodded._

* * *

"That's _the one?" Joe asked, watching as the two oddities led the female away. "A little on the scrawny side, isn't she? I've seen twelve-year-olds with more weight than_ that."

"_Yes, the female is the one agreed upon. But don't let her appearance fool you; she's been in something of a mourning state for the past couple of months. According to my sources, her beloved married someone else yesterday." Baron Tass smiled at his two companions._

_One was a human, his head as hairless as an egg except for the thick black eyebrows and moustache. With his enormous bazooka over his shoulder, it gave him a dangerous and confident look, a stark contrast to the feeling of good-breeding the monocle over his right eye gave off. "She doesn't look like much for a hunt at all," he complained._

"_This isn't a hunting party, Joe," the second replied with a strange accent. Baron Tass wasn't exactly certain what this "Shiner" person was, but it seemed as if he'd somehow gotten all the real dignity that Joe lacked. He, too, had a monocle, but wore it over his left eye instead of the right. "We work for a slave trade company, and our job is to catch slaves." Shiner gave Baron Tass a careful look. "Are you certain she will fetch a high price, Baron? My superiors will_ not _be pleased if she doesn't."_

"_She is a Thunderian noble," Baron Tass replied, "and a virgin. I can assure you for that alone, many mutants will pay a very high price."_

"I _wouldn't," Joe muttered. "I'd much rather go after that big hulking brute. Never hunted a creature like him before…." He noticed the look on Shiner's face, and quickly cleared his throat. "When do you want us to nab her, then? Going into the creature's territory is the most dangerous thing a person can do… and it would be so difficult…and thrilling…."_

_As if he were used to such things, Shiner grabbed the collar of Joe's shirt before the latter could go tearing off after the female right away. "Contain your lust for the hunt, Joe. It's bordering on a fetish at this point, and is rather creeping me out."_

_Joe made a noise that might've been a whimper of annoyance._

"_There's no doubt in my mind that you should be able to easily nab her at any time within the next few days," Baron Tass told the pair. "As she is currently living under the same roof as her beloved and his new wife, I doubt she'll want to stay home that often."_

* * *

_For all that Baron Tass tended to underestimate everyone, he was nonetheless correct about Kinyoubi's new habits. It truly was too painful for her to stay at the Lair, especially when every time she saw Claudis she had to remind herself that he belonged to her no more than the Sword of Omens did. Even locking herself in her room didn't help, as he had taken up the habit of coming to her door at least once every hour and trying to find out how she was doing. She pointedly ignored him, allowing only Snarf to enter throughout the day._

_That night, Leaena came, and though Kinyoubi wanted very badly to cuss her off, she didn't._

"_Kinyoubi," Leaena said gently, sitting on the bed beside her. The latter was on her side, curled up in the fetal position and holding a pillow to her face. "Kinyoubi, please, talk to me."_

"_There's nothing to say."_

"_You're the closest person I have to a family, Kinyoubi. I'd die for you."_

_Kinyoubi slowly looked over her shoulder, an unbridled anger radiating from her eyes. For a moment, she didn't look like Kinyoubi at all. __**"Then **_**die **_**already, and leave me be."**_

_Leaena looked disturbed. "K-kinyoubi?"_

_Kinyoubi turned away from her again._

"_Kinyoubi… all that time when we were alone in the streets… both trying so hard to stay alive… there were plenty of occasions when the only thing that kept me getting up in the morning was you. Please believe me, if I had a choice in any of this, I wouldn't have done this to you."_

_Kinyoubi suppressed the anger that threatened to rip itself from her, turning away from Leaena again. "I know that, Leaena… but I can't think right now. Please… just leave me be. I want to be alone." She waited until her friend had left the room, listening for the door to close, before reaching under the bed and pulling out the rope she'd hidden there. She'd gotten it from one of the other spies, the female called Pampas. Tying it quickly to the leg of her bed, which she pushed up against the window, she used the rope to lower herself to the ground and run off from Cat's Lair, leaving her weapon behind._

_The emotions inside of her were a complete turmoil, and that scared her. She'd never felt so miserable in her life, not even when she and Leaena were starving on the streets, but she'd never felt so viciously_ angry _either. The rage scared her, which added another emotion into the mix, and it confused her that she didn't have the slightest idea whom the resentment was directed at: Claudis, Leaena, the Sword of Omens… or even herself._

_She ran out of the city, figuring the exertion might be enough to at least calm her emotions enough for her to rest. She'd either slept badly or not at all since the announcement of whom Claudis would marry, and the weariness was starting to take its toll. She was emotionally unstable, physically weak and tired, and her thinking was abysmal._

_As such, that only made her easier prey for Shiner and Joe._

_She screeched in surprise as the net flew out of nowhere and tangled itself around her, the opposing force knocking her off her feet. Joe had actually jumped into the path before her and shot it from his bazooka. She snarled and tried to get out of it, distracted by trying to get free, and as a result didn't notice Shiner step up behind her and spray her with sleeping gas._

_She woke up with a headache, bound and gagged, and it felt to her as if she'd been thrown carelessly into the corner. She shook her head and somehow managed to get herself into a sitting position, even with her hands tied behind her back. She blinked, wondering where in the world she was; she didn't remember there being prison bars quite like this anywhere. The movement beneath her indicated that this was a spaceship, of no make that she knew._

"_That was thoroughly_ unsatisfying!" _she heard a man complaining somewhere. "She didn't even put up a good enough fight! I'd smack her around for that alone if I thought the boss would let me get away with it!"_

"_Who cares, as long as we get paid," someone else with a strange accent replied calmly. "Besides, look at these readouts. The reason she didn't give you a fight is because she's physically weary and hasn't been eating. All we have to do is keep knocking her out with sleeping gas and shove food down her throat and she'll be in perfect condition. A creature like her will fetch a fine price."_

"_If you say so, but I still think it would've been more fun to go after the one with the eye patch…."_

_It slowly occurred to Kinyoubi that she'd been kidnapped by slavers, and started to panic._ Oh, no! _she thought._ I have to get out of this! This isn't good at all; I'll be damned if I know why they nabbed me, but I have to get away! _She struggled with the bonds for a bit, her muffled exclamations nabbing the attention of one of her captors._

"_Ah, you've wakened, kitten!" he said as he stepped into her view. It was the voice of the first captor. For some reason he made her think of the villain from_ Waterworld. _"Good luck trying to get loose; my buddy did a bit of research on your kind, and we've found that Thundrainium is the best way to keep kittens like you under control. Strands of it are woven all throughout the rope that's got your feet and hands tied. And just because we don't like noise, we put some in your gag as well. There's not enough of it to completely weaken you, mind, but just enough that you won't be able to escape. You're not going _anywhere."

_She felt terror start to creep into her mind._ No… no, no, no, no, no! Not this! Anything but this! I need help, I need—

_She froze._ No… if I ask for help, the Sword of Omens will no doubt hear my cry… and Claudis will come right after me without a moment's pause. He could be killed, or worse, captured like me! _She calmed herself, closing her eyes and concentrating._ Perhaps this is for the best; as long as I'm not at the Lair to tempt him, he might eventually start turning to Leaena.

That's what you want, isn't it, Sword of Omens? So, leave me to my fate. Don't you _dare_ inform Claudis of what has happened to me! Let him assume I'm dead, or lost and beyond his reach…! Let him mourn for what he could never have, and let me lead my own life, suffer what I will along the way….

* * *

_The Sword of Omens heard her thoughts, and though it growled in frustration, it did as she wished. Silently, though, it kept a vigil on her, just in case she should change her mind. And in case she didn't, it relayed the information it gathered to the Book of Omens, so that if the need arose, those that needed her would know where to look._

* * *

"_You've resigned yourself to this a lot faster than a number of other creatures we've caught," Joe told the female, handing her a bowl of water through the bars. After only a few days, they'd felt comfortable enough to untie her bonds, though they wrapped the Thundrainium ropes around the bars to keep her inside the prison. "I'm beginning to think you're up to something."_

"_How many others that you've caught wanted to get away from their pasts?" Kinyoubi replied, taking a sip of the water. The thought of food still made her ill, even as her heart beat in sorrow for everything she'd left behind. She'd decided, though, that her captives couldn't possibly be_ that _evil, and felt that if she were fit and healthy enough they'd get what they wanted._ If need be, _she thought,_ I'll kill them with kindness. **What could be more entertaining than that?** _"I needed to get away."_

"_Not exactly the best way to do it."_

"_No. But perhaps it was the only one available to me."_

_Shiner looked over his shoulder at her from where he sat at the controls. "I guess that baron was right, then, about you having lost your beloved to another."_

_She looked over the edge of the bowl towards him. "'Baron'?" she repeated calmly._

"_The one that tipped us off to you, Tass. He's one of our regular informants on good slave material. As you're never going back to your planet, I see no reason not to tell you whom caused your abduction."_

"_You'd cleverly prefer me to hate him over those that enslave me, yes?"_

"_Well, I'd be lying if the thought hadn't crossed my mind at some point. Whether or not it works is up to you, female."_

"_My name is Kinyoubi, not 'female'." She thought carefully for a moment. "Baron Tass… isn't he that odious little butterball of a man? Fat, oily smile, falsely pleasant tone of voice…."_

_Joe laughed. "Sounds like she's hit the nail on the head to me! I couldn't have possibly heard a better description of that slime wad!"_

"_That's because you're easily entertained," Shiner replied with a sigh._

_She shrugged. "No, I won't hate him, nor will I hate you, or whatever hideous creature that buys me."_

_Joe looked insulted. "Hey, no one said you'd get a_ bad _master! A lot of the slaves Shiner and I have caught get excellent owners!"_

_She snickered. "Oh? Are there mutants at those slave auctions?"_

"_Well, yes…."_

"_That's why I know I won't get a good master. A Thunderian female of my age, a Thundercat,_ and _a virgin? No mutant will resist paying top money for me and spending all the time he wants breaking me." She felt her expression softening. "I suppose as catching me you get part of my selling price as a commission?"_

_Shiner laced his fingers together, slouching so that he could rest his elbows on the arms of the chair while still covering his lower face with his fingers. "And what if we do?"_

"_What do you plan to do with the money?"_

"_Perhaps it's none of your business."_

"_I suppose not."_

_Joe looked back and forth between the two. "Am I missing something here?"_

_Shiner rolled his eyes. "Just keep in mind, Joe, that there's a reason they assigned_ me _as your partner. I can think strategically and psychologically, you can only think of catching things. If you had your way, she'd be free to run about the cabin whenever she wished simply because she's behaving."_

"_Well, yes…."_

_Kinyoubi handed the water back to Joe. "Maybe I've been living in a fairytale for most of my life, but it seems to me that being a slave-trader isn't exactly the best line of work. Is there some reason neither one of you do something else?"_

_Joe scoffed. "I'm from a species that's shallow enough to only appreciate good looks and money! What girl would look twice at Joe, the son of a pawnshop owner? I was ignored for being poor, never mind that I had the willingness to succeed at whatever task I was set at! Richer kids with educations I could only dream of got the best paying jobs, even though they all slacked off and didn't care! The only places that would hire me were bars and restaurants; minimum wage all the way, sometimes not even_ that, _and they didn't care that I had bills to pay as long as I showed up when they wanted, worked as long as they wanted, and answered their every call without hesitation! They never cared that I wanted to go to school, that I wanted an education! Not an ugly bastard like me! No, the pretty girls and the good looking guys got the money and got what they wanted!"_

_She lowered her eyes from his. "It sounds like an excuse to prevent yourself from doing what you most want to do."_

"_I don't know what it's like on your Thundera," Shiner told her while Joe tried to puzzle that out, "but the rest of the universe is a nasty place to live in. One must have money, or power, or good looks to succeed. Everyone else gets left behind and trodden on. The strong prey upon the weak, and your foolish ideas of peace are just that:_ foolish_. Do you really believe everyone can just shake hands and be friends?"_

_She glared at him._ "No! _ You think we stand for a peace in which everyone likes everyone else, where there is no fighting at all! We might not be like the universe you know, but we are not ignorant of it! We know and understand that though we may want peace, others will be jealous or angry at us for it, and attack us for no reason other than to disrupt it! We know that in order to maintain peace, we must prepare for war."_

"_And for every century of peace, there is five thousand years of warfare."_

"_You don't think peace is worth the price of warfare? Would you prefer the false peace of cowardice and fear, of choosing safety over freedom?"_

_He turned the chair so that his back was to her. "I don't feel like being philosophical."_

_Joe was scratching his head. "Wait… what the hell just happened?"_

* * *

_Kinyoubi was hardly impressed with the slave market. She'd seen better stores for drugs in the back alleys of Thundera when she was a child._

_The market was held on, of all places, Plun-Darr. Appropriate, considering that most police forces steered clear of that planet like a plague. It made it much easier to hide illegal activity._

_The planet was dark and gloomy; the mutants had to brighten up the slave market with hundreds of lights, so that all the slaves could be examined properly and thoroughly. Kinyoubi couldn't help noticing she got a lot of appreciative looks from the prospective buyers as she was examined in full view of the others; it kept her from screaming at the invasion of fingers that inspected even the places that will not be described here. She was beginning to regret insisting that she wear nothing but her baldric and belt, as she'd gotten used to over the years. Too many of those eyes that were looking at her belonged to males._

_Even the person examining her seemed impressed. "She's perfectly healthy," he said with surprise to Joe and Shiner as he cleaned his hands, "and a virgin at that. We don't get too many of those; too many of the dolts I hire enjoy trying out the wares before selling them. Any other good points about her?"_

"_She's a warrior, and a noble of her people," Shiner told him. "Her blood is as blue as the Royalty of Plun-Darr." Kinyoubi resisted the urge to laugh at that as she tested the Thundrainium ropes that bound her wrists together. While she_ was _fairly certain she was of pure lion parentage, she knew her blood was not 'blue'. Children that had grown up on the streets their entire lives were_ not _of noble blood, not even when some of those children in question are taken in and trained as Thundercats._

_The examiner nodded appreciatively. "She'll fetch an excellent price, so she'll be kept to the very end of the auction along with the other most expensive items."_

_Shiner and Joe were positively glowing with glee. From what she'd heard, although the two of them always brought in excellent slave material, they had never yet caught something that was to be sold as some of the best products. They stood proudly on either side of her, Shiner holding the end of the rope that bound her wrists, preventing her from talking to the other slaves. There were a large number of them, and the thought sent shivers down her spine._

_There was something else, as well, and she couldn't help mentioning it. "Joe, didn't you say that only the best looking people got what they wanted?"_

"_Yes, I think I did. Why?"_

"_I've noticed that the slaves being saved for last are all the best looking. The prettiest females, the handsomest males…."_

"_Yes, so?"_

_Her eyes skimmed across the crowd of potential buyers, and she didn't like what she saw. "All the buyers with the biggest purses seem to be the cruelest." She knew she was right; those buyers that were dressed the best already had slaves with them, and it didn't take a genius to see that they had been mistreated very badly._

_Shiner and Joe glanced at each other, and she thought it interesting that they both looked worried. "Not all of them," the former said after a moment. "There's a nice looking one over there." He motioned with his head._

_Kinyoubi stared; Shiner had pointed out, of all beings in the universe, Ratilla._ **Go figure that the nicest looking one would be **_**him.**_ _The sarcastic thought brought a slight smile to her lips._ Yes. Go figure.

_Ratilla happened to look up at that moment, and did a double take upon seeing her. She'd thought he might not recognize her from when he tried to steal the Treasure of Thundera, but from the way his eyes widened in surprise, he apparently did. Beside him was a similar looking creature, probably a relative of the Sword of Plun-Darr's original owner. He noticed his elder's odd behavior, and looked at Kinyoubi curiously._

_The auction seemed to take forever. Kinyoubi's one consoling thought was that she appeared to be the only Thunderian on the seller's block, but her kind heart wept at the thought that so many creatures were stolen from their homes just to fatten the purses of others. Many of them were children, half terrified and sobbing._

_If she thought she could get away with it, she'd have thrown up right then and there._ But I must kill Shiner and Joe with kindness, she thought. _A nasty little smile started to spread over her face._ **Especially if they're going to insist on treating people this way, then that is what I shall do.**

"_Wipe that evil grin off your face," Shiner whispered to her. "You're up next."_

_She glanced around in confusion. "You mean I'm up last. I don't see anyone else."_

"_That's why Joe and I were so glad to nab you. You're officially_ _the prize jewel of this auction, and that means you're going to sell for the highest price."_

_Despite herself, Kinyoubi couldn't help but be somewhat pleased. Until she remembered that the people with the biggest purses were the nastiest. Then she started to feel scared. It didn't help when she saw that most of the buyers left were mutants._

_It actually took far longer for them to auction her off than she thought it would. The price started at only about five grand, but after an hour, even Joe and Shiner were shocked by the high bidding. And there were still at least four people trying to outbid the others—one of them Ratilla himself._

"_Do I hear two million? Two million for this lovely warrior of the Thunderians? Thank you,_ sir_! I have two million, but do I hear two million one hundred thousand?"_

I'm not even going up by thousands anymore, _she thought in shock._ I'm going up by _hundreds _of thousands! I must be a very unusual specimen. _The thought made her even more ill._

_The four potential buyers were bidding quite viciously by this point. One was an older jackalman that stared at her in such a way she had a stinking suspicion that he'd not been with a female for a long while. The second was a nasty-looking reptilian, and from the way he smiled at her, she didn't want to know what she'd be used for. The third was not a male, but rather a_ female _mutant, an albino mink of all things, and from the look on her face, she was determined to empty out her treasury to get Kinyoubi. Ratilla for his part seemed extremely annoyed that he kept being outbid, and continued glaring at the other three._

"_Do I hear five million? Five million has been bid! Do I hear six million?"_

_Kinyoubi felt her jaw drop. The auctioneer hadn't even bothered with going through the hundred-thousands. He'd just skipped to the next million without a pause, probably because he felt the auction had been going on too long._

_The mink mutant finally snarled and stalked away from the auction block, glancing back once or twice in disappointment. Apparently, she was unable to continue bidding, and seemed thoroughly annoyed with herself. Before too long, the elder jackalman sighed in dissatisfaction and stopped bidding himself._

Oh great. Now I get to go to either Ratilla the Hun—who knows _what_ I am—or the rotten reptilian. _She looked at the reptilian again, and felt the hairs on the back of her neck rise._

For some reason, I'm hoping Ratilla wins this auction. At least I know he'll only _kill_ me.

"_Do I hear one billion? I hear one billion! What about two billion? Is the female worth two billion? She is worth it, I've gotten two billion! Do I hear three billion?"_

"_You better appreciate this," Kinyoubi growled at Shiner and Joe. "All I have to do is show I can be violent, and you can kiss that money good-bye."_

_Shiner glared at her. "This is true. So why are you behaving?"_

"_I don't know. What are you going to use the money for?"_

"_Do I hear six billion? Six billion anyone? No? No one can go for six billion? The female is worth only five billion? Yes? Five billion going once, five billion going twice—"_

_Kinyoubi glanced at the two bidders in surprise. Ratilla looked furious, and the reptilian seemed very pleased with himself._

_Joe saw this too, and spluttered. "Not_ him! _He's supposed to be banned from this action!"_

_Shiner kept his dignity about him, but he was just as equally displeased as Joe. "No, he was only kicked out of the last one for not behaving himself…."_

_Kinyoubi sighed with annoyance. "What a fine time for you to recognize a rotten buyer." Sarcasm practically dripped from her mouth. "Perfect! Just perfect!"_

"Sold, for five billion Plun-Darr gold!"

_This time it was Kinyoubi's turn to splutter._ "HOW MUCH_?!" For all that Plun-Darr was a vicious world, Plun-Darr gold was worth more than three times a Thunder-dollar._ I've just been sold for more than fifteen billion Thunder-dollars, _she thought as the reptilian paid the auctioneer in cash._ Claudis would be horrified if he knew that. _ At the unexpected thought of him, her heart wrenched, and she had to close her eyes and swallow hard to hold back the tears that suddenly threatened to flow._ But I won't let him find out. I would sooner die than let him learn of this. As long as he thinks I'm dead, he'll start turning to Leaena….

_Distracted by trying to control her emotions, she didn't notice that Shiner and Joe had mysteriously disappeared from her sides. She_ did _notice when the commotion started, though, and once she looked up, she nearly fell over from shock._

_Both Shiner and Joe were fighting with the reptilian that had bought her, trying to get him to take back his bid._

_Most others would've taken this opportunity to escape, and for a moment, Kinyoubi truly did consider it. She had actually turned around by one step before freezing in her tracks._ No, it would not be kind to leave them at this time, and I said I'd kill them with kindness_. She looked at the pair again, thinking carefully. _ If I escape, that reptilian will have every right to claim that it was their fault that he's lost his new toy. That being said, they'd have to pay _him_ back the five billion Plun-Darr gold, and that could completely ruin them.

No, nasty and deceptive as they are, they don't deserve that. I can't let that happen to them!

_She wrapped the end of the Thundrainium rope around her wrists, ignoring the wave of dizziness that came over her as she was suddenly weakened even further, and did a flying leap right off the stage to only a few feet from the fighting trio. She stumbled, probably because of the Thundrainium, but quickly got back on her feet. The people around her stared, trying to figure out what in the world she was doing._

_There was a clearing around the trio, almost certainly to allow them more room to fight. As soon as Kinyoubi jumped in, she saw she was right that Joe and Shiner would not win. Shiner already had a broken arm, most likely because he was not a fighter himself, and though Joe was doing well at holding his own, he was losing against the mutant._

_Kinyoubi stepped forward as Joe was pushed back in her direction, and using his momentum to her advantage, spun him around, clasped her hands together, and swung them around across his face. He stumbled and fell from the blow, looking up at her in complete shock as she stepped over to Shiner. She took his broken arm in her hands and reset the bone, relaxing her mind. Her hands started glowing green, and as she closed her eyes, she felt her Healing power mending the bone again. Not completely, as doing so would completely drain her, but enough that it wouldn't bother him terribly._

_When she was finished, she opened her eyes to find him glaring at her. "Death is preferable to this," he growled._

"_Perhaps it is, but you didn't let me have a choice, did you?" she replied, her tone not accusatory, but rather sad. "I've been sold now, so don't worry about it. Enjoy your money." She straightened her back, ignoring the looks of shock around her (except Ratilla, who was shaking his head with a hand against his forehead), and turned to the reptilian. She held her hands out to him, offering him the end of the rope. "I believe you bought me."_

_The reptilian looked at her suspiciously, as if expecting her to try something, but finally took the rope from her. "Yes, I did." He grinned at her viciously, and it was all she could do to suppress the shudder that wanted to run through her. "And since I've paid, we shall be on our way." He tugged at the rope unnecessarily, causing her to stumble a little, but she held her tongue and followed him reluctantly._

* * *

_Leaena stopped in front of the door to the council room, pressing her ear up against it and listening carefully. She wasn't supposed to know about this meeting, but the spy called Pampas had decided to take sides between the Lord of the Thundercats and his wife. So, when Claudis had decreed that the meeting was to be kept a complete secret from Leaena, Pampas had immediately told her._

"_We can't find information on Kinyoubi's whereabouts, Claudis," she heard Jaga say. "Even the Sword of Omens can't tell you anything. If she were fine, it would tell you; if she was in trouble, it would tell you. She _has_ to be—"_

"_She's_ not _dead!" she head Claudis shout. He was pacing; she'd come to recognize it over the past few months from listening to it almost every night since Kinyoubi had disappeared. "She has to be alive!"_

"_I agree!" Snarf added. "She could be in trouble, snarf, snarf! We have to help her!"_

"_Claudis, please calm down," the soothing tone of Jagara interrupted. "You have to admit that it's strange the Sword hasn't told you anything."_

_Claudis's voice cracked, as if he were trying very hard to keep from weeping. "She can't be dead, I know she can't…."_

_Leaena felt her heart ache horribly; it had long since been torn to pieces, and it seemed to her that it refused to heal._ He wants to be with her so badly, _she thought,_ that I might as well not exist. At first I was glad she was gone, hoping that he'd start to see me, but that just hasn't happened. It's like this is becoming an obsession for him. I miss her, too, but if he really can't be happy without her… then it's time I revealed what I wouldn't before. _She opened the door and stepped into the room. Everyone turned to look at her in complete shock. "Kinyoubi_ is _alive," she said simply, "and she must be found."_

_Jaga and Jagara were completely shocked at her statement, though Snarf looked positively delighted and young Panthro sighed with relief from where he was cowering in his chair. Claudis had a strangely blank look on his face that Leaena was sure mirrored her own._

"_Leaena," Jagara said calmly, standing up and walking over to her. "That's what we all want to think, but—"_

"_I don't think it._ I know it. _Kinyoubi is alive."_

"_We've got no proof," Jaga started to say, but she interrupted him without a second thought as well._

"_You have me." She let them puzzle over that for a moment before continuing. "Kinyoubi and I have always been together, and though I never even told her for fear someone unscrupulous would use it against us, I can feel her. I have_ always _been able to feel her, and known when she was in trouble." _ Or when she was with Claudis, _she thought, but didn't say aloud. "I don't know_ where _she is, but I_ do _know that she's alive, frightened, and worried. I don't pretend to know why the Sword of Omens is ignoring her, but I know she_ is _in trouble. She_ must _be found."_

_Claudis stared at her, as if only now he was seeing her for the first time, and with a slight nod, turned to Snarf. "Snarf, gather all the other snarfs and comb every inch of Thundera for Kinyoubi. Don't come back until you've searched everywhere."_

_Snarf practically jumped to his feet like a youngster. "No stone shall be left unturned by us!" he said proudly. "If she's on Thundera, we snarfs will find her, snarf!" He ran out of the room, pausing only long enough to give Leaena's leg a brief hug before running off._

_Claudis turned to Jagara. "You go to the control room with Panthro and teach him how to use the scanners. Inform_ only _the Interstellar Police Force of her disappearance; if any mutant gets wind of this and gets to her before we do…."_

"_I understand." Jagara nodded towards Panthro. "Let's go, child, and see what we can find." She left the room with the boy, giving Leaena a strange look before closing the door behind her._

_Leaena ignored her, knowing that the others must think her a fool._ I don't care, _she thought_. Perhaps I _am_ a fool. I don't care how miserable or unlucky I am; as long as Claudis is happy, then that is all I need to go on. His obsession is not hurting anyone, and it might even help us find her.

_Claudis started looking around the room. Curious, so did Leaena and Jaga. "Alright, then, spies, where are you? I know you're listen—_ACK!" _He jumped back three feet from the quartet that had seemingly appeared out of nowhere. Aequo, in particular, was so large Leaena had no idea how he managed to hide anywhere. "I _hate _it when you do that!"_

_Pumm-Ra shrugged. "We're spies, my Lord. What did you expect?"_

"_You heard everything?"_

"_Yes. Am I to assume that as I am the best at finding people, you want me to search for Kinyoubi off-planet?"_

"_You assume right. I want you to leave as soon as you are ready."_

_Pumm-Ra nodded, as if he'd expected as much. "Then I shall be ready and gone in two hours, my Lord. Even if it takes me years, I promise that I will not return without Kinyoubi, dead or alive." He saw the look on Claudis's face. "Preferably_ alive, _of course…."_

_Rubus crossed her arms. The leader of the spies was barely the height of a twelve-year-old, though her curves and stern look gave away that she was actually much older. Her blue-gray tone seemed light against her black hair, and her red-brown eyes matched the dark red body suit she wore. "And what of the rest of us, my Lord?" the panther female asked. "If Kinyoubi is off-planet, then it was not with any registered flight."_

_Claudis frowned. "Are you certain of that?"_

_She looked insulted. "Really, my Lord. If she'd been on any of_ those _flights, we would've known, and we would've told you immediately."_

_He thought carefully. "But… that means she'd have to have been deliberately kidnapped…."_

"_And for us_ not _to know about it, it's all too likely that someone on Thundera is behind it. The kidnappers had to have been hidden." Rubus looked over at Leaena. "You said you get feelings. Do you get any thoughts as well?"_

_Leaena closed her eyes. "Sometimes… but only if she thinks very hard about something…give me a moment…." She half-closed her eyes, allowing that part of her mind which felt Kinyoubi to touch her friend. She shuddered unexpectedly. "All I'm getting are names. Joe, Shiner, Tass."_

"Baron _Tass?" The fourth spy, who'd been completely silent to this point, smiled viciously. Her dark gray hair spilled down to her buttocks, the two stripes streaking down the center of it accenting it's thickness. Her light grey body was almost sinfully shaped, and the dominatrix-like suit—if it could be called a "suit," as it was nothing more than straps—only accented that. She blinked her golden eyes and purred to Claudis, "I always told you he was a serious troublemaker." Her voice was deep, and one could almost taste the blood in her words. "I don't suppose…?"_

"No killing!" _Claudis told her firmly, glaring at her._

* * *

Bengali had a weird sense of déjà vu. "Apparently, you're more like your father than we thought," he told Lion-O.

* * *

_Rubus gave the female a disgusted look. "We have no proof he's done anything, Pampas. Contain your bloodlust."_

_Claudis thought carefully. "No… we might have no proof, Pampas… yet. Would you be willing to spy on him? If we could get that proof, we can arrest him."_

_Pampas seemed to think, her lips pursed as if she were going to bestow a kiss upon someone. "I could, but then that would leave you with only two spies."_

_Rubus shook her head. "Aequo and I have been looking for possible recruits, and I've also gotten word from Hyou; he will be back within a few days. I don't know how he's managed to survive on Plun-Darr for so long, or even how he's getting back, but he's on his way even as we speak."_

_Pampas turned to Aequo. _"Ha!_ I _told _you! You owe me two hundred Thunder-dollars and a free meal at a restaurant of my choice!" She turned back to Claudis, ignoring Aequo's annoyed expression. "Then as you request, my Lord, I shall watch Baron Tass exclusively. When shall I start?"_

_Leaena smiled a little sadly, turning away and stepping into the hall with the intention of returning to her room. She was stopped by Jaga. "Leaena, I need to ask you something."_

"_Oh?" she asked coldly, turning to him._

_He looked at her carefully, as if he couldn't decide if he should be angry or pleased. "Why did you do it? This is no longer a matter of finding a missing loved one, it's becoming an obsession for him!"_

_She snarled at him. "My choices are of no concern to you, 'wise' Jaga. I don't care what path you walk, but this is the one I've chosen."_

"_But to lie and give him false hope—"_

_She slapped him across the face. "How_ dare _you! I would never lie about such a thing! Kinyoubi is the closest thing I have to a family! Without her,_ I have nothing!" _She'd hoped to get away without Claudis noticing her, but saw to her dismay that he'd come straight to the door at the commotion. She quickly turned and tried to get away, but he grabbed her arm before she could. "Let go of me," she snapped, feeling her control over her emotions slip._

"_Leaena, what's wrong—" he started, but froze in shock when he saw her tears._

_She screamed and punched him. _ "NO!" _she screeched._ "Don't make this any harder for me than it already is!" _She tore down the hall like a cheetah, refusing to look behind her and see if she was being followed._

_Someone snatched her from the hall and pulled her into a side room. For a moment she was confused, and slightly afraid, but when Pampas's arms enfolded her in their safety, Leaena started so cry. "Men are so stupid, aren't they?" the spy asked, giving the Thundercat the comfort she needed. "Do not worry, my Lady, I will not betray your secret. My loyalty is to you and Kinyoubi alone."_

_Leaena could only sob in response, clinging to the other like a lifeline. She didn't know how the spy had gotten in front of her, but she didn't care. Right now she felt lonely, and Pampas's presence, as strange as it was, was preferable to being alone._

* * *

"I must apologize," the Book Guardian said as the image faded, "for letting that run longer than I should have. I'm something of a hopeless romantic. Besides, I think the snarf needs to compose himself."

Lion-O and Bengali looked at each other in surprise before looking to the spot where Snarf was. "Snarf?" the former asked. "Is something wrong?"

Snarf was crying. He looked utterly miserably, as if his heart had been broken. "We combed every inch of Thundera," he moaned, "and never even found a hair of her, snarf, snarf. If I'd known she was off-planet, I would've found some way to sneak onto the ship with that Pumm-Ra…."

"And then _you_ would've never come back to Thundera," Lion-O replied firmly, kneeling beside his old nursemaid. "Pumm-Ra made a vow that he would not return without Kinyoubi, dead or alive, and I'm sure I would've noticed if he had returned. I'd never seen him before Mumm-Ra used his appearance as a disguise."

"I can see now why Claudis didn't tell me about the spies, snarf, snarf," Snarf sniffed, trying to stop his tears. He was deliberately changing the subject, but neither Lion-O nor Bengali saw any reason to stop him. "That Pampas woman just gave me the creeps the few times I saw her. If I'd known what she really was, I would've died right then and there, snarf, snarf."

"Worse than Venenum, was she?" Bengali asked.

"She certainly seemed that way, snarf…."

"She _was_ much worse than Venenum," the Guardian told them conversationally. It almost sounded like it enjoyed the gossip. "Venenum kills out of anger. Pampas killed for the sheer pleasure of it… and especially enjoyed eating her victims. Raw."

Bengali glared at the Guardian while Lion-O and Snarf looked ill. "Sometimes I think you only tell us some of these things to see our reactions."

"Can you blame me? It gets boring in here, especially since visitors don't come all that often."

"So Kinyoubi was sold into slavery." Lion-O thought carefully. "That must mean she's still on Plun-Darr."

The Guardian sighed with annoyance. "I love how you don't even bother to ask if that's all I have to show you."

Bengali snorted. "Fine. Is that all you have to show us?"

"No."

Snarf's eyes widened, and he looked at the Guardian with a bit more hope. "Wait, snarf, snarf… is it possible that Kinyoubi isn't on Plun-Darr anymore?"

"No, she's not on Plun-Darr."

"Snarf! Then you know where she is?"

"Yes."

"_Where is she,_ snarf, snarf?" He looked ready to take off upon hearing the answer.

The Guardian sighed again, this time with waning patience. "There is a problem with telling you at this point in time. You wouldn't believe me. Also, in order to free her from where she is, you _must_ understand how she got there. Otherwise, there's no point in telling you her current whereabouts."

While Snarf growled, Lion-O nodded to the Book Guardian. "Alright, then, continue. We know Kinyoubi was on Plun-Darr when my father sent the spy Pumm-Ra out to find her. I assume the spy failed."

"He did, but you will learn more of that later." The sphere cleared, once again showing Plun-Darr.

* * *

"_It's been five years!" Joe said with a smile as he sat across the table from Shiner. Apparently, Plun-Darr had its moments when it could look fairly pleasant, as the outdoor café seemed to confirm. "Time sure does fly! Doesn't it feel like that whole fiasco only happened yesterday?"_

_Shiner rolled his eyes. "For me, no. I'd rather hoped I'd never see you again, but it looks like someone else had other plans." He glanced briefly at the letter before he noticed the metal monstrosity beside his companion. "What is_ that?"

_Joe grinned proudly. "This is my new robot, Mule! It tells me all I need to know about my prey before I go after it! Say hello to my old chum, Mule!"_

"_Hello (puft)."_

_Shiner pointedly ignored the machine. "I don't suppose you happen to know anything more about what we're doing here, do you?"_

"_No, wish I did. Say! I was thinking about giving myself a name. What do you think of Joe the Hunter?"_

"_Sounds like someone Tarzan would be up against." Shiner pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. "You wouldn't happen to have ADHD now, would you?"_

"_ADHD? Nah, I don't take drugs. Not 'Hunter', huh? Hmm, what else is there that has to do with hunting? I_ want _people to know I'm a hunter."_

"_And not a bully?" the captain muttered into his cup of tea._

"_Safari is a kind of (puft) hunt," the annoying machine answered._

_Shiner glared at it, intending to whip out his blaster and destroy the nasty thing out of spite, but something else caught his attention. As if the chair he was sitting on had suddenly electrocuted him, he jumped to his feet, staring in open surprise at the reptilian mutant that walked past the outdoor café._

_No, not at the mutant. At the slave that followed him. Physically, she didn't appear to be permanently damaged, but she'd lost a lot of weight, as if she hadn't been eating well or been seriously overworked, and her eyes had a blank and glassy look to them. Probably most startling of all, however, was that her brown hair had streaks of platinum blond through it. Not from chemicals, but from sheer mental abuse._

_Joe was confused at Shiner's reaction, until he saw the slave himself. "Hey! Kinyoubi!"_

_She actually went a few more steps before she stopped, slowly turning towards them. For a moment, it looked as if life came back into her eyes, but the reptilian tugged on her rope, and stumbling, she continued to follow him like a living corpse. Shiner felt his nerves shake, as she kept glancing back at him and Joe._

_Not in anger, as he was used to. But with hope, as if they could somehow save her._

"_Didn't she agree with you when you said 'death is preferable'?" Joe asked. "Rather makes one wonder why she hasn't killed herself."_

"_Maybe she can't," Shiner replied, slowly sitting down. He crushed the letter in his hand, wishing it was the neck of that disgusting reptile. "Maybe that choice is kept from her by him, as we kept it from her."_

"And I believe you can give it back to her." _Joe and Shiner looked up at the rat mutant that had sat down at the table with them, much as if he belonged there. "I was hoping you'd both answer your letters."_

"_So_ you're _Ratilla," Joe said carelessly. "Nice to meet you! What does the female have to do with your letter?"_

"_Everything," Ratilla replied. "She is a warrior of her people, and while I do not care for the Thunderians, their warriors are good enough that they do not deserve to be kept as exotic pets, as she is. A warrior deserves a warrior's death, and she has been denied that." He looked at Shiner. "You're a mercenary now, thanks to the price you got for her. So, how much would it cost me to have you and your ex-partner give the Thunderian what it is she should've gotten five years ago?"_

"_A proper death, you mean?" Shiner looked back towards the road that Kinyoubi and her master had disappeared down. "For her sake… I think I'll do this one for free."_

* * *

_Kinyoubi was not aware of her surroundings. She followed her master submissively, her will of steel long since smashed to pieces. She did as she was told, allowed herself to be used and abused at his whim, and just stopped thinking for herself. It was easier to just do what she was expected to do, and not even try to be herself anymore._

**You disgust me,** _a voice whispered in her head._ **All this to keep someone safe. That's no excuse to give up. What would Claudis say if he could see you now?**

I would have to make him understand, wouldn't I?_ she thought back to the voice_. Anyway, I'm sure he's forgotten me by now and has long since turned to Leaena.

"_What do you want?" she heard her master say._

_Kinyoubi stopped, confused. "I didn't say anything, Master," she said meekly._

"_I wasn't talking to you, Kitten!" he snapped, smacking her across the face. "Pay attention!"_

_She looked up and felt that supposedly dead spark of hope make itself known again. They were only a few feet from the reptilian's space ship. Shiner stood before them, dignified as always, although the uniform he wore now was different from the one he'd worn as a slave trader. He looked cleaner, prouder, like someone that everyone could respect… if not necessarily agree with._ What's he doing here? _she thought._

**Maybe he's looking for a tip,** _the voice said sarcastically._

Stop that! _she thought back._

"Well, what is it you want?" the reptilian said a second time.

"_You're going to have to forgive me," Shiner said calmly to her master, "but this stupid robot I bought seems to have a few bugs in it. It saw your slave and insisted that it be allowed to recite a poem to her."_

_Kinyoubi blinked, looking at her master to see if he recognized Shiner at all. From the look on his face, he did not. "A robot reciting poetry?" he asked slowly. "There's a good one. Fine; I suppose Kitten deserves a gift as she's been good. I haven't needed to really beat sense into her for a long while now." She shuddered, reminded of his idea of "beating sense into her"; she'd nearly killed herself with trying to Heal the wounds he'd left each time._

_Shiner's eyes twitched slightly, but he quickly bowed a little to hide his expression of disgust. "Thank you. Mule, get on with it. We've got things to do."_

"_Of course, (puft) Captain." The ugly machine, which made Kinyoubi think of the choo-choo trains in the books she once read as a very small child, turned to her and held its hands out towards her. It gave the impression of taking a deep breath, and then delivered:_

"_If my love were a (puft)_ weapon…

_I'd keep you safe (puft)_ inside…

_The (puft)_ prison… _of my arms_

_If I couldn't keep it (puft_) hidden…

_I'd shelter you (puft)_ under… _my wing_

_On a soft (puft)_ bed… _of feathers."_

**?**

_Shiner's eyes twitched again, although this time it was in annoyance. He glanced at the reptilian carefully, as if trying to discern something. Whatever it was, he must've found what he wanted, as he immediately relaxed. "As you can see, I need to take this stupid thing to get repaired. I mean, machines falling in love? That's just insane."_

"_I can believe that," the reptilian replied with a sneer. "And now, if you'll excuse me, Kitten and I need to get take off. We've delayed long enough as it is." He didn't notice the figure of Joe slipping out of the ship quickly and disappearing._

_Kinyoubi heard the poem over and over again in her head, as if there were a tape recording of it somewhere in there._ It 'puft'-ed on every line, _she thought,_ and then emphasized the next word and paused, as if it has a speech malfunction or something. _Deeper inside her mind, she heard that voice repeat various parts of the poem._

**(puft) weapon….**

_She followed her master onto the fancy and expensive ship, only vaguely aware that his favorite employees were already there. There had been one too many times when he'd rewarded their good work with letting them play with "Kitten" afterwards. Times she didn't really want to remember._

**(puft) inside….**

_She allowed herself to be put in her cell, the only area of the ship that did not have a proper door. When the nasty creatures weren't torturing her, they enjoyed watching her like perverts, leering at her through the bars of her cell or cage._

**(puft) prison….**

_She felt something inside of her mind jump up in surprise._ **It was a code! Shiner used the machine for it! "Weapon inside prison, hidden under bed!" That's what Joe must've been doing inside the ship!**

_Kinyoubi behaved herself for several hours after that revelation, well aware that she would only have a very brief time that she would not actually be watched. When the rat mutant watching her left for whatever reason, she threw herself under the bed, scrambling at the metal plates that covered the floor. One of them came loose in her hands immediately, and she was able to put it aside and reach into the hole that it left. She pulled out two sheets of paper, and curious, read them._

Hey, there, Kin-Yo-Bee! Joe here! Writing because Shiner made me do it. Not really sure why. Anyway, I got a ship with the money we made off of you, lots of hunting equipment, as well as a new robot called Mule. You saw it, it recited the poem to you. Wrote it myself, what do you think? I'm a sportsman now, better than catching slaves. Definitely more fun! I promise I won't torture anything I catch. Just kill it quickly. You'd be amazed at some of the things people buy from me; had one woman that wanted tiger brains for her lunch. Yuck! Well, tootles, and have fun storming the ship of your ex-master! P.S. Sorry about the weapon, it was the only thing I could get that scanners won't pick up on.

To Kinyoubi, in answer to your question, I wanted the money to buy my own ship and crew. As the senior partner, I got most of the commission, and was able to do what I wished. I am now a mercenary, and I think it would please you to know that I am currently working with the Interstellar Police to capture all the slave traders I once worked with. I do side jobs along the way, most of them probably things you would not approve of, but that doesn't matter. You were right about what I'd done; I should've killed you when I had the chance.

Shiner, Captain of the spaceship Vertus.

_A little worried now, Kinyoubi hesitantly reached into the hole one more time. She felt a handle, and grasping onto it, pulled the weapon out of the hole. She saw what was written on the handle, and felt her blood run cold as she read, "Death Is Preferable."_

_It was an executioner's axe._

_She stared at it in horror._ No, _she thought._ I can't use this. They don't deserve this, not one bit, no….

_**Excuse **_**me?! Yes, they do!**

No, no, no!

**YES. Use it, you wimp!**

"_No, no, no, no, I can't, I can't!" Kinyoubi said, pulling herself out from under the bed. She tried to let go of the axe, but her hands seemed to have a will of their own. They gripped onto the handle with an anger she didn't like one bit. "NO! No,_ I can't do it!"

**You disgust me.**

"I DON'T CARE!"

**Fine then. I'll do it.**

_Kinyoubi started screaming._ "NO, DON'T! DON'T YOU DARE! PLEASE, I"LL DO ANYTHING FOR YOU—!"

* * *

_Jaga looked over all the papers that Hyou handed to him. "We haven't heard from Pumm-Ra for a while, Claudis," he told the Lord of the Thundercats. "Now I'm starting to become concerned about him."_

_Claudis looked at Hyou, the leopard Thunderian that was Rubus's second in command. "If something happens to him, I don't suppose…?"_

_Hyou shook his head. He had been somewhat frail and sickly since his return from Plun-Darr; he'd used his own medical examinations to try and figure out what was wrong with him, only to come up with the conclusion that he wasn't going to live to see another ten years. Whatever it was that was killing him, he was only certain that it wasn't contagious; if it was an STD of some kind, he wasn't saying. "As you know, I'm in no condition to run off searching for so much as a hair comb, my Lord. Pampas is already watching Baron Tass exclusively, and that leaves only Rubus and Aequo. Though we already have possible candidates for my replacement, it would take too long to train them."_

_Claudis sighed. "I really don't see how this could possibly get any wor—_Leaena?!"

_Leaena had been sitting nearby, looking despondent, when suddenly she shot up from her chair so fast that she knocked it over. She didn't say anything, but the look on her face was one of sheer horror. Then she screamed, clasping her palms to her temples._

_Claudis reacted before Jaga could, leaping out of his own chair and grabbing Leaena's shoulders. "Leaena! What's wrong?_ Leaena!" _He was clearly frightened, and tried hard to shake his wife out of her state. "Leaena!" She suddenly stopped, staring ahead blankly. He slowly let go of her. "Leaena, are you alright?"_

_She didn't answer. She coughed once, a little bit of blood dribbling down her chin, before she collapsed to the floor._

* * *

_The monkian looked up from the engine controls with annoyance. "She's been screaming for a while now…."_

_The two jackalmen stopped what they were doing to look at each other in concern. "She can't have cracked already, can she?" the first one asked. "It's only been five years!"_

"_There's only one way to find out, and we better do it quick. The boss won't be happy if he finds out his favorite pet has gone crazy so soon."_

_They left their posts and ran to the prison, the monkian not far behind them. The screaming continued even as they got to the prison door; the slave had her back to them from where she huddled beside the bed, curled up in the fetal position as her voice ripped through the air._

"_Get that door open!" the monkian ordered. "If she does anything drastic, we'll be the ones held responsible!_ I _saw the price she went for at that auction!"_

_The second jackalman grabbed the keys from where they hung out of the female's reach, quickly unlocked the door, and entered. He was followed by the monkian. "Hey, Kitten! Are you okay?"_

_She finally stopped screaming; panting heavily, she slowly turned her head to look at them. "O…kay?" she asked hesitantly, as if she'd never really spoken aloud. The first jackalman scratched his head. He was pretty sure her voice hadn't been that high-pitched before._

"_Yes, you were screaming," the monkian told her, as if she were an idiot. "What in the world were you doing that for?"_

_She slowly stood up. "Oh… that." The first jackalman started to back away from the prison a little. He didn't like that look in her eyes, and her body language told him that she was hiding something from them. "I wanted…_ you _to come."_

_She moved so fast, the two in the prison probably had no idea what in the world had happened. One moment, they were perfectly fine; the next moment, the second jackalman's head went flying from his shoulders, and the monkian's own head was split in two. The look on the female's face was one of pure hatred, and she wrenched the executioner's axe out of the monkian's corpse as if it was something nasty she'd stepped in._

_The first jackalman didn't wait to see what she'd do next, but instead turned tail and ran as fast as he could to the nearest telecom. He smacked the button for the main bridge and started shrieking,_ "Boss, the female's gotten out, and she's—" _The sound of something whistling through the air distracted him, and he turned around just in time to see the axe flying at him like a wheel before it impaled him between the eyes, killing him instantly._

* * *

_The reptilian stared at the telecom, trying to figure out why so much blood had suddenly splattered all over the screen on the jackalman's end. "What's going on down there?" he asked with annoyance. "What do you mean the female's out?"_

"_He can't answer you anymore," a voice replied. It_ sounded _like the female, but was pitched higher. A finger gently wiped away just enough blood on the other screen so that the reptilian could see just the eyes of his female slave. But… they weren't the same eyes. They weren't kind, or blank… it was as if something evil lurked in them. "You'll be joining him soon," she continued, the fury visible from the little of her that he could see. "I'm coming for you, too,_ 'Master'." _The sarcasm on that last word was so thick he could almost taste it._

_He stared to panic. Frantically, he shut off communication with that particular device, and stared calling all the other stations at once. "Red alert! The female's gotten out of her cage, and she's armed! Stop her using whatever means necessary! I repeat, red alert! The female's—" He jumped back with a shout as the telecom blew up in his face. "Damn it, what's happened?"_

"_She's destroyed the communication base," was the unwelcome reply. The vultureman shrank beneath his boss's angry gaze. "Sir, I think she's heading for the—" There was a muffled explosion, as all the power immediately went out. The acceleration, however, only got faster. "The engines," the vultureman muttered hesitantly. "Blown like that, with the power is out, we can't slow down or stop the ship. We can still maneuver, but that's about it."_

"_Which means?"_

"_Which means if we don't do something quick, the only landing we'll be able to do is a crash landing!"_

_The reptilian turned to the bearman and turtle mutant at the computers. "Stop her, and quickly!" he ordered them. "Do whatever is necessary!"_

_They nodded, running to the door, pulling it open, and leaping into the hall. A few moments later, there was a high-pitched shriek, and the reptilian sighed with relief, thinking they'd stopped the female. Not too long after that, something came bouncing into the room from the hall._

_It was the head of the rat man that had been watching her in the first place._

_The female stepped into the room, covered from head to toe in blood, but she herself didn't have one wound on her. She walked funny, as if she hadn't used her legs in years, and she jerked strangely, like she was unused to the body. In one hand she held an executioner's axe; in the other she held what was presumably left of the bearman and turtle mutant. "I've come,_ 'Master'," _she said quietly._

The reptilian slowly stood up. "Now, just calm down, Kitten."

_She laughed at him. It was an evil laugh, full of anger and delight._ "Kitten_? Oh, no, she's all tied up where you can't get to her anymore. I'm sick of her 'protecting' me. I'm sick of her running away. I'm sick of watching her serve your every whim as if you're a god! I'm sick of watching you beat this body black and blue, breaking the bones, using it as your sperm receptacle!" Her voice rose higher in pitch with each word, her frustration more than evident. "She was willing to let you continue, hoping you'd change, but I know better! Scum is scum, it'll never change!" She grinned maniacally. "So… I'm going to kill you now."_

_The vultureman tried to sneak past her, but with a flash, the axe buried itself in his neck. Though the female acted as if she'd never been in a body before, her reflexes were fast, and her killing instinct razor sharp._

_She glared at the reptilian as she pulled the axe out of the body with a twist of her wrist. "You're the last one," she told him. "All the others are dead, now." She slowly started walking towards him. "I've waited five years to kill you…."_

She's insane, _he thought._ And how the hell did she get that axe?

_He wasn't given that much more time to ponder. Without any hint as to her next move, she leapt at him and attacked him with the axe. He barely dodged her; he couldn't move as fast as she could, being much larger than she. He started to become extremely frightened, realizing that the tables had turned, and that she was now the master._

_He fell to his knees before her. "Please don't hurt me," he begged, backing away from her, hoping some tiny part of her would listen._

_She grinned viciously, but just as she lifted the axe to deliver a fatal blow, her face seized up, and before his eyes transformed into the face of the creature he'd come to recognize as his prized slave. "No, don't hurt him!" she said, closing her eyes, her voice once again that deeper tone he'd grown used to. "Please, don't do this!" But the face warped again, and the vicious female came forth. "I'm sick of listening to you! 'I just want to protect you', 'I just want to keep you safe'! Just shut up for once and let me take control of my own life for once! YOU'VE HAD YOUR CHANCE, NOW GIVE ME_ MINE!"

_The reptilian didn't understand what was going on, but he _did _recognize an opportunity for escape when he saw it. He slowly started to back away from the female, staying on his knees so that she wouldn't notice._

_The kinder creature was back. "No, sister, I only want to keep you safe, please, listen to me—" The higher voice took control once more, and this time, her expression was livid. "Shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up,_ shutupshutupshutupSHUTUP!" _she screamed, pulling back the axe with her gaze fixed on him. He froze like prey before her. _"I'M IN CONTROL NOW, AND THERE'S NOTHING YOU CAN DO TO STOP ME! I CHOOSE MY FREEDOM OVER MY SAFETY!"

_Instead of going for the reptilian, however, she flipped around and started smashing the axe into the control panel. Sparks flew around her, cables and wires sizzled as they were sliced apart, metal went flying; any chances of being able to maneuver the ship were now gone. She screamed with fury the entire time, finally reaching into the mess with her bare hand and ripping out a bunch of sparkling wires._ "DEATH IS PREFERABLE TO BEING KEPT A CAPTIVE!"

_She slammed the wires back down into the board, and it blew up. She was barely able to cover her upper face with her forearm in time to keep the flying metal and glass from cutting into her eyes, but the debris tore at the front of her body, the slices crisscrossing all over her chest, arms, and legs. The reptilian was not quite so lucky; the last thing he saw was a sheet of metal flying towards his head._

* * *

_Leaena had woken up a few times, only to scream unintelligibly for a few moments before passing out again. The last time she collapsed, she did not wake up._

_Claudis sat beside the bed that she had been laid upon, staring mournfully at her sleeping face. Jaga watched him, trying to discern what it was that was going through the Lord's mind._ Is he only now realizing that he's been so obsessed with finding Kinyoubi, _he thought,_ that he's completely neglected his wife? There's no doubt in my mind that Kinyoubi left with the intention that he turn to Leaena, but I don't think she took into consideration his loyalty to his first love. Perhaps it's horrible of me, but I find myself wishing that Kinyoubi _does_ die, if only that Claudis cannot continue to obsess over her disappearance.

"_You called for me, my Lord?" Pampas asked as she stepped into the room._

_Claudis didn't look at her. "Have I been a fool, Pampas?"_

_She pursed her lips in that strange way of hers, staring at the ceiling as if she were going to kiss it. "How freely am I allowed to speak, my Lord?"_

"_As freely as you wish. I know your loyalties are divided, and that you've chosen to put Leaena's orders above mine." He was silent for a moment, as if embarrassed. "She loves me, doesn't she?"_

"_She's loved you ever since she first saw you, my Lord. She kept quiet, because she knew you only had eyes for Kinyoubi. She chose your happiness over her own at a very young age, my Lord, and old habits die hard. Even now, when she's had her greatest wish for five years, she chooses not to stand between you and Kinyoubi." She thought for a moment. "And, yes, I think you're a horribly idiotic fool. A cruel one at that; she's been your wife for five years now, and you haven't even so much as smiled at her."_

_He sighed sadly. "I figured as much. Thank you, Pampas. You may return to watching Baron Tass."_

"_You don't wish to hear of my report on him?"_

"_Not at this time, no."_

_She nodded, and then turned to Jaga. "There is something important that must be seen to now, Jaga. I think Lord Claudis is a little preoccupied at the moment, so perhaps you should see it in his stead."_

_Jaga nodded, and followed Pampas out of Claudis's room and into the council chamber. Rubus, Aequo, and Hyou were already there, the three of them looking worried. Jaga frowned. "What is it?" he asked._

_Instead of answering, Rubus slowly turned around the laptop that sat in front of her on the table. Written across the screen in enormous red letters was the phrase:_

Pumm-Ra is dead.

_Jaga stared at it for a long time, trying to figure out how in the world he was going to tell Claudis._

* * *

_The Warrior Maidens ran through the trees as fast as they could towards the fire. A great ship had fallen from the sky and landed in the forest; the heavy rain that poured down around them would likely prevent the fire from spreading, but they needed to put out the main fire before it could damage anything permanently._

_Willa, eight years old and determined to be as good of a queen as her mother, followed behind the others. She was half afraid, but mostly eager of what they would find. When she saw the wreckage, though, she started to understand why her mother might not have wanted her to come._

_The ship had torn itself into two pieces, and the bodies it contained had been thrown out upon impact. "Oh my goodness," someone said. "It looks as if they were all killed before it landed!"_

"_Probably just as well," Willa's mother said. "Could anyone have even survived that?"_

"_Only if they were tied to something stable, something that wouldn't have moved much in the crash. The mental trauma, though_—HOLY MOTHER OF THE FOREST!" _The woman pointed at the ship's front end._

_A female form stepped out of it, walking strangely, as if she were not used to moving. Her hair was completely platinum blond. Slashes and cuts covered her body like whip scars, and her eyes were entirely white. She'd been blinded by the crash._

* * *

The change was not complete, but it had progressed far enough that Lion-O, Bengali, and Snarf all shouted in complete surprise. "That's impossible!" Snarf shouted. "That's utterly _impossible!"_

"Th-that's not Kinyoubi," Lion-O stuttered, shocked.

Bengali couldn't help smiling despite himself. "Huh. So _that's_ why no one knows who Venenum is."

* * *

**End of Part Three.**

And now for the Random Notes!

Kinyoubi: Japanese for "Friday", the kanji for it for it, when separated, are actually the kanji for "gold" and "day", as well as a third kanji that is only used for the days of the week.

Snarfer's real name: Everyone's heard that Snarf's real name is really Ozbert; someone once pondered if Snarfer had his own secret name that _he_ didn't want anyone to know. There was only one name I could think of that was hideously embarrassing for a creature that supposedly is devoid of evil….

Leaena: Latin for "lioness."

Jenny Craig 1-2-3: I honestly have no idea if this particular program is still around (and if it's not, boy do _I_ feel old….). I only vaguely recall the commercials. I also remember watching "Well of Doubt" with my sisters, and my older sister immediately saying that the Baron needed to go on Jenny Craig 1-2-3, to with my little sister added jokingly, "4-5-6."

_Waterworld _villain: _Waterworld _is a movie starring Kevin Costner, and takes place on an Earth where the polar ice caps have completely melted. Supposedly, it's not a great movie (I like it). Maybe it's just me, but something about that villain in that movie makes me think "Safari Joe." That would probably explain why I like the _Waterworld_ villain, as Safari Joe is one of my favorite one-time bad guys. That, and Dennis Hopper's cool. May he rest in peace.

Rubus: Latin for "blackberry". I believe I mentioned earlier that there was another Latin word for "black" that I did not use for various reasons. Rather than cheat by calling Ater's mother "Aternia" like I'd originally thought of (right up to the point my older sister forced me to watch _She-Ra, Princess of Power),_ I just gave the little mother her own name.

Pampas: There is a kind of small cat called "Pampas cat". Seriously, that's the animal's name. I assume it's not a very well-known species (I could be wrong), so this particular spy got the honor of keeping the species name (minus the "cat" part) as her own.

ADHD: No, it's not a drug, which says a lot about Safari Joe's education. It stands for Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder. Anyone who has ADHD can neither sit still nor pay attention to anything very well. I've had to deal with someone burdened with it for the past twenty-some-odd years, and it definitely tries one's patience….

Kinyoubi's hair: I have absolutely no idea if this is true or not, but it was something that I'd heard about and thought was a neat idea. Supposedly, when someone suffers a severe shock or goes through a massive amount of stress in a short period of time, their hair goes gray or white very early (in this case, in the matter of one space-ship crash). And, thanks to Claudis, we know that aging lion Thunderians go blond in their old age.

Hyou: Japanese for "leopard".

**In Spies and Assassins Part Four:**

The truth about Kinyoubi and Venenum is revealed, as is the whereabouts of both women. Now, the real question is whether or not Lion-O, Bengali, and Snarf can rescue them before Baron Tass makes his own move. Because Baron Tass clearly has no life and nothing better to do. Seriously.


	5. Part Four: Lost Thundercat

I've got too many things going on in my life right now, what with two jobs, hardly enough sleep, attempting to finish my original novels, and become an illustrator. I'm afraid that when I promised God I'd gladly go through a year of Hell in order to buy my mother's house from her, He took me quite literally.

Bugger. I wonder how long He considers a year to be….

Again, there are Random Notes at the end of this lovely little part, a preview of Part Five, a request that spoilers not be revealed in any comments given, and also a request of patience for parts Five and Six—mostly because I'm not entirely certain if I'm going to be able to finish them anytime soon, what with everything going on in my life at the moment. Merry Christmas (or Hanukah, or Kwanzaa, or whatever you might or might not celebrate), and Happy New Year!

12/15/2008

**10/8/2012 Edit:** THE STORY IS FINISHED. I will be posting the last two chapters and epilogue as soon as three things have happened: 1. My beta readers finish checking over the chapters for spelling errors, grammar mistakes, and plot holes, 2. I've finished the final editing, and 3. My little sister gets married and I can stop worrying about it; she's hit a few snafus along the way (like the place where she was supposed to have both the wedding and reception cancelling on her FIVE DAYS BEFORE THE WEDDING), and I rather want to make sure it's over and done with before I concentrate on anything else. But I have every intention of posting those before 2013 comes along! Keep an eye out for them!

* * *

**Part Four: Lost Thundercat**

Wily Kat poked his head into the control room, half-afraid to interrupt whatever it was that Serica and Aequo were doing. Multiple machines were hooked up to the main computers, scanners covering every inch of New Thundera, infrared cameras being examined closely by the white tigress and the wolf mutant. "Have you found Venenum yet?" he asked quietly, hoping his silent question might not be heard.

It was heard, and thankfully, neither of the spies took exception to it. "We've narrowed down the possibilities, at least," Aequo replied, his tail slashing back and forth in concealed annoyance as he read flashes of green writing that dashed across a computer screen. "We figured out a few hours ago that we're going to have to go about this backwards. We can't pinpoint _where_ she is, so we're deliberately finding her by defining where she is _not."_

Serica stared at the scanner before her face, her nose barely an inch from the glass. "We will find her, rest assured on that. We've our own motives, not just yours. Neither Aequo and I feel comfortable enough just yet to train someone to take Venenum's place."

"That… seems a little cruel," the boy said uncertainly.

"It is also, nonetheless, the truth." Serica smiled sadly at Wily Kat. "It is near impossible to get past those barriers she's built about herself. It's not as if Aequo and I haven't tried to be friends with her—she just won't let us. No one, not even Ater, has been able to enter her heart."

_It's like they are really worried about her,_ Wily Kat thought to himself, closing the door behind him, _but they don't want to admit it, not even to themselves._ He couldn't really understand it, but then again it wasn't the first time that he'd seen adults do something that didn't make sense to his young mind. _Are they so afraid to show her that they care, as if she somehow might turn it on them?_

Confused, he walked back down the dark hallway. It was the middle of the night, and it was long past the time he should've been in bed. Opening the door to the room he shared with his sister, he shook his head at her as she jumped up eagerly. "They still haven't found her."

Wily Kit sighed. "They must think we're awful, hoping that they'll find her only so that we can prove Baron Tass wrong."

"_They_ might think that, and even the other Thundercats might think that." Wily Kat sat on the bed with her. "But we know the truth, don't we, Kit?"

"Venenum was always a little scary, wasn't she?" Wily Kit asked quietly, lifting her hands as if she were holding onto an invisible ball. "Sometimes I wonder if that dream we had of her was real. And if it is, she's still the same person as she was then, isn't she?"

"We're not even sure if she's the same person at all, Kit," Wily Kat reminded her. "I'm not certain, at any rate. It was years ago, and that's assuming it _was_ real."

"I'm sure it's her, Wily Kat, just as I'm sure that's why Jaga told Lion-O that Venenum is the key to finding Thundercat Kinyoubi. It's just way too weird for Venenum to look exactly like the woman in that dream we shared. Maybe Baron Tass _isn't _our father, but something about him saying that Thundercat Kinyoubi is our mother sounds right."

Wily Kat shook his head, sighing. "We'll probably never find out who our parents really are, Kit. That's too much to hope for, and the stuff of fairytales and fanfiction. Let's just hope that when they find Venenum, they'll find Kinyoubi, and then we'll at least have proof that Baron Tass is a big fat liar."

* * *

"I _refuse_ to believe it!" Snarf shouted at the Guardian of the Book of Omens. "I will _not_ believe it! It's utterly and completely _impossible!_ Kinyoubi and Venenum are _not_ the same person!"

"Maybe it was a split personality of some kind," Lion-O said shakily. "Five years of abuse might've—"

"NO!" Snarf practically screamed. "NOT KINYOUBI! _NEVER _KINYOUBI!"

Bengali was enjoying himself for once. "Face it, Snarf. Your precious Kinyoubi is a nut job."

"_That_ was uncalled for, Bengali," Lion-O said sternly while Snarf puffed up in fury. He quickly turned to the Book Guardian. _"Are_ Venenum and Kinyoubi really the same person? _Is_ it a split personality?"

"No," the Book Guardian answered calmly. "They are _not_ the same person, and their condition is not the result of a split personality. The Thundercat Kinyoubi and the spy named Venenum are very much two separate entities. They are twin sisters."

"_Twins?"_ Lion-O asked while Bengali blinked in surprise and Snarf shut his mouth to listen closely. "I don't get it…."

"Kinyoubi and Venenum are twin sisters," the Guardian repeated. "While still in the womb, Kinyoubi absorbed Venenum's body into her own. Don't look so horrified like that, young Lord. Vanishing twin syndrome is natural; Venenum's body was a blighted ovum that had died early on in the pregnancy, and Kinyoubi merely absorbed it completely. Only Venenum's soul remained, sealed inside the body that Kinyoubi dominated."

Bengali thought back carefully on some of the things the Guardian had already shown them, tapping his fingers against his chin. "Kinyoubi knew, didn't she? She called out to Venenum, calling her 'sister'."

"Yes. The five years that Kinyoubi spent being tortured and broken by that mutant, the only thing that kept her from becoming insane was her discovery of Venenum. Upon learning of her sister's existence, Kinyoubi then had another reason to tolerate the abuses thrown upon her. Venenum had wanted dearly to protect her sister from the mutant, to rebel and turn the tables on the mutants, but Kinyoubi refused, locking Venenum away deep inside of her to keep her safe."

"I take it Venenum didn't care for such behavior."

"No. Though Kinyoubi only found out about Venenum during her enslavement, Venenum herself was always aware, always watching, always listening and learning. She, too, had fallen for Claudis as Kinyoubi had, and though Kinyoubi mourned, those vicious thoughts and threats were not hers, but Venenum's. Unknowingly, for most of her life, Kinyoubi had kept Venenum locked away from the rest of the universe. It only angered Venenum more when her sister continued the same way _after_ learning about her. That anger turned into resentment, and finally hatred over the years, coming to a head when Safari Joe and Captain Shiner left behind that axe. Kinyoubi weakened, and Venenum took control."

"That's the other reason Kinyoubi wasn't chosen by the Sword to be my father's wife, isn't it?" Lion-O asked quietly. "It knew Venenum was there, and it knew she had a violent streak. Sooner or later Kinyoubi would've weakened, that's a given; if she'd done it at the wrong time, Venenum would've gotten loose—"

"Yes."

"I knew that bitch couldn't have been Kinyoubi," Snarf said with a pleased sigh.

"Like Kinyoubi's any better," Bengali snapped. "She was a selfish twit! If her idea of keeping Venenum 'safe' was to lock her up and throw away the key, I'm glad Venenum got the better of her!"

"Wait a minute," Lion-O interrupted. "What about Pumm-Ra? How did they know he was dead?"

"All the spies," the Guardian said, "upon being chosen as such, have a chip implanted near the connection of the brain and the spinal cord. It is tiny, barely the size of a pinky-nail, and indestructible. It's only purpose is to monitor the spy's life signs. When a spy is dead for more than 48 hours, the chip then sends a signal to the other spies, informing them of the demise."

"So Pumm-Ra's chip confirmed him as dead at about the same time Venenum got control of Kinyoubi's body and crash landed on Third Earth," Bengali mused. "And during the crash Kinyoubi's body was physically scarred and blinded, making her appear completely different. What happened after that, Guardian?"

* * *

_The Warrior Maidens backed away in horror as the beaten female stepped away from the wreckage. Her head snapped back and forth a few times at the noise, and she lifted the executioner's axe threateningly. "Who's there?" she asked in a voice roughened by smoke and blood._

_Frightened, the Maidens prepared their arrows to fire, just in case the female took it into her head to attack._

_Eight-year-old Willa, however, was not afraid. All she saw was a wounded creature, probably just as frightened as the rest of the Maidens were. Ignoring her mother's gasp of shock, the child stepped out boldly towards the female. "We won't hurt you," she said soothingly, holding her hand out to the creature. "There's no need to be afraid of us…."_

_The female frowned, reaching out blindly with her left hand. Upon touching Willa's face, the hand carefully studied it. "A… child?" the creature whispered, confused. The axe fell from her hand._

"_Did those other creatures hurt you?" Willa asked quietly, holding the blood covered hand to her cheek. "Is that why you killed them?"_

"_Killed?" The female looked surprised, as if something had only just occurred to her. "I… killed them…? I did… didn't I?" Slowly, she knelt before the child, her face distorted with a combination of physical pain and misery. "I murdered them… I did…."_

"_It's alright now," Willa whispered, wrapping her arms around the female's neck to comfort her, shushing her. The other Maidens, seeing that Willa had tamed the creature, slowly came forward as the female cried against the child. "Everything's going to be just fine. You're safe now. None of us are going to hurt you…."_

* * *

"_THAT HURTS!" the female shrieked at the top of her lungs as the Maidens pulled bits of glass and metal out of her wounds, then rubbed antiseptic balm into them. She tried thrashing around, but the Maidens had had tied her down. "FUCK IT! STOP IT!"_

"_Would you prefer for the wounds to get infected and rot?" one of the Maidens snapped irritably. "Look at you, a grown female acting like she's never gotten injured before!"_

But I haven't, _the female thought, refusing to say such a thing aloud. She grit her teeth and bore with the pain, wishing she could at least see so that she could tense herself for the experiences._ I've never had _any_ physical feelings before, thanks to a rotten sister of mine….

**I'm sorry,**_ Kinyoubi whispered silently from deep inside their shared mind._ **If I'd known you would act like this, I might've—**

No you wouldn't have, you fucking liar!

_Kinyoubi was silent for a moment before changing the subject._ **They're going to ask you for a name, sister. I don't think you'd care to give my name… but… you don't have one….**

_The female distracted herself from the pain by thinking carefully over the truth of Kinyoubi's words._ Damn. They are, aren't they?

**I can give you a name!** _Kinyoubi was eager, as if willing to do whatever was necessary to get her sister to forgive her. _**How about Blossom?**

Blossom?! What the fuck were you drinking before I took control? Apparently the side-effects of it are still in your soul, you fucking bimbo!

**Um… okay…. Maybe Bubbles?**

I am going to kill you….

**Buttercup isn't a bad name—**

"I'M NOT A FUCKING PET!" _the female screeched out loud._ "STOP TREATING ME LIKE ONE!"

_There was a pause from the Warrior Maidens. "Maybe she's more sensitive than we are," one of them whispered. "We're probably hurting her more than we thought…."_

_Kinyoubi seemed beaten._ **You're so poisonous, sister,** _she whispered. _**I'm only trying to do my best….**

_The female felt a nasty smile curl her lips._ Poison? Yes. I like that.

**Huh?**

Poison. Venom. No, the Latin for it. Venenum. That is who I am.

**Sister, please, that's almost sadistic….**

I am _not_ your sister, _the female thought viciously._ You will refer to me as Venenum, and nothing else.

**But—**

If you do not, I will squash you away, just as you did to me so many times!

**It… does rather seem horrible… in here. I'm so sorry… Venenum. Perhaps I truly am spoiled, not to have seen until now how awful it was for me to trap you… I was only trying to protect you….**

Spare me your self-pitying, _Venenum's thoughts snapped. She was vaguely aware of tears falling from her eyes. They were not hers, thought, but rather Kinyoubi's. For all that Venenum fought viciously for control, Kinyoubi's dominance was winning._ Hold yourself back in that prison, then, if you want to pay so badly for your sins! Leave me in control of this body, or I swear by Claudis's name I will hate you for all of eternity!

_The silence lasted for only a moment._ **If that is what you wish… Venenum… then I shall do as you ask.** _The tears stopped as Kinyoubi retreated into the mental prison, willingly pulling the door closed behind her._ **I would do anything for you, my sister. I love you, and only want the best for you.**

_This time, the tears that streamed from the blind eyes were Venenum's._ I hate you, _she replied acidly,_ I wish only for you to die….

* * *

"_Well?" Queen Jasmine asked as the Maidens who had tended the alien returned to the queen's quarters to report. The queen herself was ill, but managed to show no weakness; she would not live for more than a year, and she knew it. During her last few months, she insisted on remaining strong. "How is she?" she asked when she got no immediate answer. "Will the creature live?"_

"_She will live," a blond replied, "though I have no idea how. The mental trauma alone should've killed her." She hesitated for only a moment before adding, "There are scars on her wrists and ankles, and evidence of severe injuries from the past. I think, my queen, that she might've been tortured…."_

_Willa, standing beside her mother, frowned and tiled her head in confusion. "Tortured? What's that?"_

_Jasmine glanced at her daughter briefly. "I will explain later, little one… assuming your fascination with that creature doesn't prompt you to get your answer from her first." She'd already berated the child once, but the fear of a mother for her only child was too strong to resist sometimes. "I can't believe you did that, Willa! She could've killed you! You do understand how dangerous that was for you to just waltz right up to her like that, don't you?"_

_Willa winced. "But she was in pain, Mama, and needed to be reassured that she was safe…."_

"_You won't always be lucky like that, Willa! Promise me that if this should ever happen again, you will be far more careful in trusting a strange creature!"_

_Willa nodded, pretending to understand what her mother was telling her. She really didn't, but she still made a little promise to herself to obey her mother's command._

_Jasmine noticed the maidens were still in attendance, but in such a way that they still had more to say. "What else is wrong?" the queen asked._

_There was a long moment of silence before one of them said, quietly, "The female is pregnant… but we cannot tell yet whether or not she will miscarry."_

* * *

"I'm WHAT?" _Venenum shrieked. "You've got to be lying!"_

**She's not lying,** _Kinyoubi whispered._ **I've known for several weeks now; I even know who the father is. It was that human, the one that Master hired to fix the spaceship three months ago; he offered to cut the cost in half if he could… sleep… with me, remember?**

"_We're not lying," the Warrior Maiden replied patiently. "That's one of the reasons we're keeping a close eye on you. Because of the injuries you've sustained, you're in serious danger of miscarrying."_

"_Let me!"_

_The maiden looked shocked. "I can't do that! A miscarriage is a serious matter! It could kill you! Our best option is to prevent a miscarriage at all costs, and get you physically healthy again. Then the baby can—"_

"_I don't want it. Get rid of it!"_

"_No!" a child shouted. "You can't! The baby has done nothing to deserve being killed!"_

**By Claudis,** _Kinyoubi's horrified voice echoed in Venenum's mind._ **You can't be serious!**

"_This is my body now," Venenum growled for both Kinyoubi and the interfering child to hear. "It is my choice to do with it what I wish. And I choose to get rid of the pregnancy."_

"_No!" This time Venenum could clearly hear the tears in the child's voice. "You're hurting, you're clearly not thinking this through! _

"_Willa, leave her be," the adult maiden chastised. "Can't you see she's been through hell?"_

"_Exactly! Hurting her more won't solve anything!"_

**Please sister,** _Kinyoubi begged,_ **don't get rid of it. Please reconsider.**

"_It's_ my _body," Venenum repeated angrily. "I will do with it what I wish!"_

_The child ran from the room, wailing loudly. "Don't mind her," the long-suffering maiden said, sighing with irritation. "She can be awfully self-righteous at times. It'll be a good trait for a queen, but it's_ damn _annoying in a child!"_

_Venenum growled something as a response, blocking from her mind the child's shrieks, just as she ignored Kinyoubi's silent sorrow._

_She'd won, and she knew it, but she felt neither proud or pleased. Just empty._

* * *

_Willa stumbled through the unicorn forest, knowing very well that she was not doing herself any favors by attempting to find someone while crying. Assuming she ran into something dangerous, she was in no state to defend herself. "Unicorn keeper!" she wailed, stumbling into a clearing. "Where are you? I need you, please!"_

"_Really, child, that's no way to act," a voice said gently from behind her. She turned to find herself facing the two Unicorn keepers. "This is a dangerous forest," he continued, "even with us doing what we can to keep it safe."_

"_Whatever is the matter, Willa?" his wife asked kindly._

_Willa ran over to them, clasping onto the latter and bawling. In between sobs, she told them of the alien creature and what she wanted to do. "It's horrible!" she finished, gulping and scraping her hand across her aching eyes. She was crying herself sick, but she didn't care. "The creature is hurt, and I know killing the baby will only hurt her more! Why won't they listen to me?"_

_The Unicorn keeper sighed. "It is the nature of mortals to think of _'here and now', _not_ 'what will be'. "

"_I understand how she is worried for this pregnant alien, though," his wife told him. "She is clearly in a damaged state, both physically and mentally. Aborting the pregnancy could harm her to the point of death. Going against nature is a dangerous game, and nature has a very nasty way of handing out a payback."_

_Willa screamed. "I DON'T WANT HER TO DIE! HASN'T SHE BEEN THROUGH ENOUGH?!"_

"_Not so_ loud, _child!"_

"_I've got to stop her, I can't let that happen to her! Letting her die is just as bad as killing the baby!"_

"_It is in my experience," the Unicorn keeper said sadly, rubbing a hand over his bald spot, "that women are very stubborn. Especially if they've convinced themselves that what they are doing is right." He frowned at his wife's scowl. "Don't give me that look, you know it's true."_

"_I'm more inclined to say 'don't force your beliefs or opinions on others," she told Willa after a moment. "Instead of making a fuss, come up with a solution. This creature clearly doesn't want the child, and you can't force her to keep it against her will, even if it is for her own good, can you? So, what kind of solution can you come up with?"_

_Willa stopped crying, thinking about the problem rather than complaining about it. "A solution?"_

* * *

Venenum sat in a corner of the room, her blind eyes wide and blankly staring at nothing. She sat beneath a window, fairly certain that the day was sunny, as she could feel the heat of the light on her damaged flesh. It burned, but she didn't mind. She imagined that it burned away any possible infections she might've gotten from her injuries.

Her hand, almost with a will of its own, caressed her stomach lovingly. Realizing what she was doing, she angrily snatched it away. "Stop that!" she snapped, knowing full well that Kinyoubi would hear her.

**I didn't do anything,** _was the quiet response._ **I'm still in the prison, sister, and not attempting to leave.**

_The door crashed open, and though Venenum couldn't see anything, her head snapped towards the sound. "Who's there?" she snapped._

"_I am!" a young voice piped. It was the child that had been so upset over a silly pregnancy. "I've come to make a deal with you!"_

"_A deal?"_

"_I want your baby!"_

"_Uh… huh. And you assume I'm going to say 'yes'? Just like that?"_

"_No, I know you're going to try and talk your way out of it. That's why I said I'd make a_ deal: _I'll do whatever you want me to, and all you have to do is give me the baby."_

_Venenum was silent for a moment, unable to believe the idiocy of the child. "First of all, there's nothing a brat like you could do for me that warrants payment in the form of a baby. Second, I don't get the impression you're old enough to care for_ yourself, _let alone a child."_

"_I'm a Warrior Maiden! I've only four years before I'm considered old enough to bear children of my own! Besides, I've already spoken to my mother. She told me that if you'll agree, then I can have the baby, and she'll help me."_

"_This is ludicrous! Why am I even discussing this with you?"_

"_Please! Don't you understand? I'll do anything you ask of me!_ Anything!" _The last word was strongly emphasized._

"_Ha! Fine, if only to get rid of you, I'll amuse you by thinking on your offer, but don't wait with baited breath. I shall still say no."_

"_Then I will beg and plead with you until you say yes! Don't assume I have whimsy fantasies like a spoiled brat! I want your baby, and I'm willing to do whatever you want me to for it!"_

_Venenum listened to the determined footsteps as the child stomped away. "Foolish brat," she muttered. "I hate children."_

**You might feel different about your own,** _Kinyoubi started hesitantly._

"_Fuck you! I want you to stay out of this!"_

_There was silence, but not for long._ **It could be made so that I truly am gone from your life, sister.**

_That took a moment to sink in. "Eh?"_

**That child said she'd do anything for the babe. Tell her you want her to find a magician or sorcerer, a powerful one.**

"_And why, pray tell, would I do that?"_

**Because then the sorcerer can destroy me. Utterly, completely, and permanently.**

_Despite herself, Venenum listened. "I could tell him to bind you, gag you, put you into such a deep sleep that you wouldn't exist for all practical purposes? And you'd agree to this? All for a silly baby?"_

**Yes….**

_She felt a cruel smile grace her lips. "A life for a life, eh…?"_

* * *

_Willa returned to the creature the next day, determined to put up a screaming fight if necessary. Her heart was set on doing what she believed was right, and even the gods themselves wouldn't be able to convince her otherwise._

_She didn't know she had a silent helper on her side, one who had spent all night carefully and quietly convincing Venenum to agree to the child's terms._

_Willa stepped into the room, stopping in her tracks. The female creature that answered—somewhat slowly, granted—to the name Venenum sat on the bed, her blind eyes staring at her. Willa knew she couldn't see, but it was almost frightening to look into those white eyes and not see anything looking back._

_Bandages covered the creature, from just below her eyes all the way down to her toes. Blood stained the white cloth in several places, making the creature look like a fresh mummy ready for burial. "I can tell you've returned," was the creature's statement when the child had said nothing for a long while. "I assume it is the same reason as what you had yesterday?"_

"_Yes," Willa replied. She placed the basket she carried in front of the creature. "As a sign of my determination, I even bought you something."_

"_Oh? Pray, do tell me. I'd look myself, but as I'm sure you know, I can't."_

"_There is a magical entity in the forest. She lives in a white pyramid, and she does nothing but good things. I went to her last night while I was supposed to be in bed, bringing with me some of the rarest flowers and herbs for her as an offering. I told her of your predicament, and she gave me a jar of salve." She took the jar out of the basket and placed it in Venenum's hands. "It will heal all your wounds quickly and with less pain, so that you will be just as strong and healthy as you were before you crashed here. It will even return your sight to you."_

_She was silent for a moment. "But…?"_

_Willa blinked, confused. "But?"_

"_There is always a price to pay for free deeds, child, don't think I've forgotten that."_

"_You will always have the scars from your accident," Willa said reluctantly. "Even your eyes, when they heal, will not be their original color. I'm not quite sure I understand, but she said that you must always carry a reminder of what you've done, so that you won't be tempted to do it again."_

_For only a moment, the creature looked miserable. "I understand what she meant."_

_Willa debated revealing one last thing, but decided not to. It made no sense to her at all, more so even than the 'reminder' bit. "This salve will also leave a protection on the creature," Mumm-Rana had said gently as she'd handed the jar to Willa. "In the state she is in right now, she will be susceptible to evil tendencies. The barrier this salve creates will protect her as much as it can, but most importantly, it will remind her constantly that she herself is_ not _evil."_

_Venenum handled the jar carefully. "I accept this, child, but you did say you would do anything I wanted you to do."_

_Willa had half-expected something like this, but she was becoming a little concerned at how easy it was all turning out to be. "Yes," she said carefully. "I did. And the offer still stands; the salve is merely to tell you the my seriousness in this matter."_

_Venenum smiled. "You say the one you went to is a magical entity? Is she the only one? She sounds a little too goody-goody for my purposes."_

_Willa blanched. "There is, but believe me when I say you want nothing to do with him! He is eternally evil!"_

"_It is an evil sorcerer I need."_

"_Not like him, please! The last one to challenge him was torn to shreds and devoured by him! Poor Pumm-Ra never stood a chance!"_

_The smile disappeared from the creature's face._ _**"Pumm-Ra? He was **_**here?"**

_The child frowned. The voice hadn't sounded the same at all that time. It sounded too kind, to start with, and was deeper. "Y-yes. Did you know him? He told us he was looking for someone named Kinyoubi."_

_Venenum grabbed her head, crushing her hands to her temples, snarling to herself._

"_You must've known him." Willa, a little scared, stood her ground. "I'm sorry about Pumm-Ra's death," she said quietly after a few moments. "Please understand, now, why I fear to take you to the sorcerer in the Black Pyramid."_

_An evil sort of chuckling was the answer. "I care not for Pumm-Ra, and if you knew his tendencies, you would not either. Take me to this evil sorcerer, child, and I will give you the babe I carry." White eyes stared in the child's general direction. "That is your_ only _option! I will not allow it any other way!"_

_Willa, feeling a little ill, but determined to keep her word, sighed. The prospect of taking the creature to Mumm-Ra frightened her, but…. "Alright, then. I will take you to him."_

* * *

_Even with Mumm-Rana's magical salve, it took many months for Venenum's body to heal enough for travel of any kind. Willa had done everything the creature asked, even borrowing a mule from the Wollos so that the pregnant female—due in only a few short days—would be able to make the journey._

_Venenum complained like nobody's business about the pregnancy, but she kept her word. At this point, she was willing to do whatever it took to get rid of Kinyoubi, though Willa did not know this._

_The child moved slowly through the desert, glancing up once or twice at Venenum. Even perched on the mule, it looked as if the trip was taking its toll on the female. They had been moving since morning, and the creature looked as if she was going to be ill again._

_Her belly was swollen, and though the scars across it gave the impression of popping open, there were no complications. The creature's eyes had healed strangely, too. Willa was not sure what color they had been originally, but the strange emerald-green they'd changed to wasn't natural in the slightest. A week ago, Venenum had declared that she could see again. Upon seeing her reflection, she'd been silent for a very long time before telling Willa to thank Mumm-Rana for a job well done._

_The creature so often spoke in riddles that the child couldn't understand._

"_We're almost there," Willa said after a moment, pointing to the tall pyramid in the center of the darkened desert. "Are you still—?"_

"_Yes." Venenum smiled at the child, her face strangely contorted, as if she never learned how to smile kindly. "I am still certain this is what I want."_

"_Okay…."_

_As soon as they reached the pyramid, a door opened up in its side. Willa froze, terrified, as an ancient voice called out, "Only the one that wishes to have business with me may enter. Stay outside, young child, if you value your life and that of the babe the female carries."_

"_She's practically ready to drop!" Willa snapped, horrified at the evil sorcerer's audacity. "You expect her to just walk in without any help?"_

"_I'm not an invalid," Venenum snapped, slowly getting off the mule. "If he wishes for you to stay outside, then stay outside." She steadied herself against the nervous animal, gasping a little and holding a hand against her stomach. "I will be fine." Taking a deep breath, she walked forward proudly, not even turning around as the door closed behind her, sealing her inside._

* * *

_Claudis dozed lightly in the chair beside Leaena's bed. It had been months since she'd fallen into a coma, and whenever he'd not been working, he'd been at her side._

_It was interesting to him to see how the others acted at this change of feeling. The Thundercats breathed sighs of relief, hoping they would no longer have to step on eggshells around the Lord and his virgin wife. The spies, on the other hand, kept their opinions to themselves. Except Pampas. She proved her devout loyalty to the one she considered most important by blatantly ignoring Claudis, unless given a direct order. She wasn't _exactly _insubordinate, so he saw no reason to call her out on it._

_The slightest whisper of fur was the only warning Claudis had that he was no longer alone in the room. As the Sword of Omens remained silent, however, the Lord felt no reason to do more than rouse himself just enough for speech. "Who is it?"_

"_It is Aequo, my Lord."_

_Claudis opened his eyes and looked up at the mutant. "Am I being foolish, Aequo? To be so obsessed with one love that I couldn't even see the one standing right in front of me?"_

"_Pampas seems to think so."_

"_I know what _she _thinks. I asked what_ you _think."_

_Aequo thought carefully for a moment. "The rules of courting and betrothal on Plun-Darr are very different than here, my Lord. However, I have seen many male mutants single mindedly pursue a female the way you pursued Kinyoubi, just as I've seen them pine away for females out of their reach as Leaena does for you. I would not dare venture to guess whom is the most foolish."_

_Claudis thought on that for a moment. "So… for all practical purposes, the females have full control of any courting or betrothal relationship?"_

"_They've so few rights, it only seems fair to allow them the power of their sex."_

"_Well, then I can at least be rest assured that there are plenty of mutants on Plun-Darr are just as foolish as me."_

_Leaena groaned._

_Claudis snapped his head around to look at her, the last scraps of sleep torn away. She hadn't even moved since she collapsed after her strange outburst, and he'd begun to think he'd lost her before he ever gained her. "Leaena?" he yelped, his voice high-pitched in combined excitement and fear. "Leaena? Please, answer me!"_

_Leaena slowly opened her eyes. "Where am I?" she asked quietly. "Where is—" Her face contorted with fear. "No… no!" She tried to lift herself up, but she'd lost too much strength in her coma. Helpless, she started crying._

_Claudis took her shoulders and lifted her while Aequo quickly propped pillows up behind her. "Leaena, calm down, please. What is it? What's wrong?"_

_Leaena shook her head slightly, unable to look him in the eye._

"_Please, Leaena."_

"_I can't feel her anymore," was the whispered reply, laced with sorrow and regret. "Kinyoubi's gone! I can't feel Kinyoubi's presence anymore! She's gone! My sister's gone!"_

_Something inside his chest suddenly snapped; his heart had suddenly shattered. Upset with himself and the loss of one love, he did the only thing he could think of._

_He sat on the bed beside Leaena, took her in his arms, and wept with her._

* * *

"What happened?" Snarf yelped as the image disappeared in the Book Guardian's flames. "What happened to Kinyoubi?"

"I don't know," the Guardian replied with resignation. "The Sword of Omens was unable to penetrate Mumm-Ra's Pyramid after Venenum entered. I can make an educated guess, but I have no true facts on Kinyoubi's current state."

"This is becoming weirder by the moment," Bengali sighed. "Weirder than usual, anyway."

"Well, what do you want _me_ to do about it? I can't help it if it sounds like a bad fanfiction story."

Lion-O crossed his arms. "At least we know that Venenum truly is the key to finding Kinyoubi, and why. As for where _Venenum_ is, knowing Mumm-Ra's kind of deals, that one isn't too hard to guess." He narrowed his eyes at the Guardian. "But I get the impression that there are still some things left that you need to tell us."

"Of course. I know you are not just looking for Kinyoubi; you are looking to prove Baron Tass is a liar when he says the Thunder kittens are his children."

"You have information on that, too?" Bengali asked eagerly.

"Yes."

* * *

_A week had passed since Venenum had gone to Mumm-Ra's Pyramid, and everything had changed. Utterly and completely._ That is not my child,_ she thought to herself as she stared down at the Warrior Maidens gathered in the clearing at the center of their kingdom._ That child is not my flesh and blood….

_Mumm-Ra had warned her that the spell he'd cast would make her head woozy for a couple of days as her body acclimated itself to Kinyoubi's absence. Venenum hadn't realized just how woozy until she woke up this morning._

_Somehow, Willa's mother had fallen gravely ill all at once, just about the same time Venenum had gone into labor. The female creature didn't remember much, but she did remember the woman's dying words as she held Venenum's human-like babe in her arms. "Your child was a stillborn," she'd said, a slight smile playing on her lips. "This child is_ my _daughter, Nayda." She'd claimed the child as her own, as Willa's sister._

_Successfully severing any ties Venenum might've had on the child._

_With the death of their queen, Willa was now named the heir-presumptive, to truly take the throne six years hence. And like any good daughter would, she swore over her mother's grave to raise her little "sister" Nayda as best as she could._

_Venenum could not stay. She was not wanted here._

_She watched the funeral gathering below her with mixed feelings, her eyes never straying from the babe that Willa cradled proudly. Somewhere in her mind, a tiny part of her cried out in astonishment, trying to comprehend why she'd wanted to destroy the babe while she was still a part of her. The rest of her denied the child's existence, refusing to be a part of her young life._

_With nowhere left to go, Venenum finally turned away from the Warrior Maidens' kingdom and ran off, dodging from one set of tree branches to another._

* * *

_The footsteps glowed._

_Hatchiman stared down at the body, his face blank by iron will alone. It was a horrible mess; the person had been murdered quite violently, as if the killer had been in a particularly aggressive mood. If it weren't for a few little odds and ends here and there, the samurai wouldn't even have known who or_ what _the corpse had been._

_From what he'd been told of the character, the victim probably didn't deserve as much, but Hatchiman knelt beside the body anyway, clapped his hands together twice, and prayed. All the while, though, he couldn't take his eyes off the footsteps all around the body, leading off into the forest._

_As soon as he finished, he stood up and looked down at the Wollo that had led him here. "You say sis is not se first time such a sing has happened?"_

_The Wollo nodded. "This is the seventh victim in a month. As I'm sure you know, he wasn't exactly the good-neighbor type, but he certainly didn't deserve death. And there's absolutely no evidence as to whom the killer is or where he might've gone."_

_Hatchiman frowned. "Sen where did se footsteps come from?"_

_The Wollo looked around curiously, his gaze passing over the steps several times but not seeing them. "Footsteps? Where?"_

_The samurai held his peace._ So, only I can see the footsteps, _he thought._ But they glow so brightly… why is it no one else sees? _"I wiru try to catch sis murderer, my friend, but I cannot guarantee anysing."_

"_All we ask is that the killing stop. That's_ all _we ask."_

"_I wiru do what I can." Leaving the Wollo, Hatchiman followed the footsteps into the forest._

_He was so intent on following those strange glowing footsteps, when he finally looked up from them, he was startled to see that the sky was already darkening. _Have I been so determined to find this creature that I have not been paying attention to my surroundings? That is not goo—THERE!

_He'd heard the swish of air barely in time to duck. Turning, he rammed his shoulder into his assailant's stomach, grabbing the Thunder-Cutter's hilt and attempting to draw in from the sheath._

_It wouldn't budge_

The sword won't draw? _He looked at the one that had attacked him and felt his face flush from embarrassment. Not only was the creature naked, she was very much a female._

_And he'd just hit her._

_He started to bow to her, intending to apologize profusely for his behavior, but jumped back just in time to miss having his head ripped off by her clawed hands. Literally. He'd also noticed much to his chagrin when he'd looked down that_ she _was leaving behind the glowing footsteps._ The murderer is a woman? This rather complicates things….

_Sensing his hesitation, the female took advantage of his inability to attack. The Thunder-Cutter refused to be drawn against a woman, and Hatchiman himself was finding it increasingly difficult to defend himself without hurting her. At some point during the scuffle, he saw the empty and lost look in her face._

What is going on here? _"Why do you attack me?" he finally managed to ask when she pulled back a little for a better assault. "I hab done nossing to you!"_

_It was her turn to hesitate._

"_I did not come to kiru you or harm you," he reassured her. "I onry came here to stop se kirring."_

_She stared at him for a long while. "Your accent is too thick. I can't understand you."_

_He sighed, tapping a finger against his forehead. "Boku wa doshite…?" He looked at her and said as carefully as he could, pronouncing each difficult syllable, "I onry came to stop se kirring. I wiru not harm you."_

"_That's what the others said," she hissed, crouching to attack again. "They all _lied!"

"_I am a samurai!" he responded. "A man of honor! I gib you my word sat I wiru not harm you!"_

_She hesitated again._

_Seeing confusion enter into her empty eyes, he held his hands out away from his body, sending a silent prayer to his ancestors that his gamble worked. "I swear to you, on se sourus of my ancestors, that I would sooner take my own rife san harm you. Do you understand? Justice, honesty, royaruty, and most importantly honor are sa sings sat I horud most dear!"_

"_Justice…?" she whispered. "Honesty…? Loyalty…? Honor…?" She was silent for a long while before repeating, "Justice, truth, honor, and loyalty…?" She started shaking, tears spilling from her eyes. "Truly?"_

"_You hab my word!"_

_What happened next, he never really understood. Though he learned to know her better over the next nine years, he never understood her actions on that night._

_She threw herself at him, clung to him like a child, and bawled as if her heart was broken._

* * *

_Hatchiman watched the strange female sleeping soundly in the bed he'd made for her as he sat on his heels at his table. He was playing a dangerous game by inviting her into his house, he knew that very well, but he couldn't find it in his heart to turn her away. That, and the glowing footsteps still puzzled him. He'd asked her about them earlier, but considering the look she'd given him, even she couldn't see them._

_So why could he?_

_He leaned his head in his left hand, tapping the fingers of his right against the table as he thought._ There is magic going on around here, I can feel it. Perhaps that is how only I can see the footsteps. But why me? Is it because there is something that only I can do for her? That lost look in her eyes, that lack of purpose… she should not have that look, not at her apparent age. She is innocent like a child, but destructive like a demon….

_Those strange green eyes opened and looked at him, holding his rapt attention. It slowly occurred to him that she had only been pretending to be asleep. "You haven't touched me," she said, confused, sitting up._

_He frowned at her, not pleased at her insinuation. "I torud you, I am a man of honor. I wourud_ neber _hab se audacity to touch a woman as she sreeps."_

"_A man of honor… you called yourself a Sam-Atari or something like that, yes?"_

"_A _samurai."

"_Samurai, then. I have not met men like you… except one… and it was not me he saw."_

"_Oh?"_

_Much to his surprise, she told him everything, leaving nothing to the imagination. Claudis, the Sword's decision, the capture of Kinyoubi, Venenum's breaking free, the murders, the baby, even why she murdered all those other men. As she spoke, he couldn't help but notice her attitude towards him._

_She expected him to hate her._

A creature trapped in the mind of another for years, _he thought,_ never having any real contact with the outside world and having no social skills. I blame her sister more as a fool than I blame this creature for what she's done.

"_Well?" she asked, looking at him straight in the eye. The blanket she held over her shoulders slipped off of one side._

_He refused to look at what it revealed, continuing to stare her down. "Weru what?"_

_She frowned again. "You've nothing to say to me?"_

_He thought very,_ very _carefully before he spoke again. "You do not know se difference between good and eviru, between what is right and wrong. You onry know what your sister arowed you to know. Sere is no point in my judging you. You are rike a chirud in an adurut's body." His tongue froze; he suddenly found it very hard to give her the offer he'd thought of._

"_A child in an adult's body?" She considered what he said. "Yes, I suppose that would make sense. Perhaps you would be willing to teach me, then? This difference between good and evil?"_

_He raised an eyebrow, partially thankful that she was, at least, thinking along the same lines as he was. "And you choose _me _to do sis because…?"_

_She smiled a little. "You said yourself that you are a man of honor. I will take you at your word. After all, it would not do for me to return to Claudis at any point and not know anything about what he stands for."_

* * *

_Nine years later, Venenum was a very different creature from the hellcat that had been released from Kinyoubi's mind. Far more patient, careful, and observant, deliberately mimicking the samurai's accent, Venenum had learned to be honorable and loyal… but her grasp on the concepts of truth and justice had been horribly skewed. It probably didn't help in the slightest that she'd decided to take the path of a ninjutsu, learning the trade of secrecy and deception. And her temper, though she had far more control over it than when she'd been released, was still deadly._

_Actually, considering all this, it's probably a miracle Hatchiman and Venenum never killed each other._

_As the moon rose in the darkness, telling the ninja that midnight was coming, she got up from her bed and packed her few belongings into a messenger bag. She glanced over her shoulder once or twice to make sure that Hatchiman was still asleep as she worked._

_She'd become quite adept with the use of poisons and sleep aids, successfully managing to slip one of the latter in the samurai's drink earlier. Her paranoia had caused her to start eating poison herself, to build up as large an immunity as possible to anything that might kill her. It helped that Hatchiman refused to eat or drink anything she'd put her name on._

_Sneaking out of the house with the darkness was easy. The skin-tight black outfit she wore blended in with the night, as did the scarf that she'd wrapped around her face and hair to hide them. Silent as a grave, she slipped through the trees towards the Berbil Village, heading towards the ship that RoBear Bob and RoBear Bert would be driving past Thundera, just close enough to drop off a lone passenger and her one bag of items._

_She was almost there, but froze upon seeing what was in front of her. "You're supposed to be asleep!" she snapped at Hatchiman._

_He stood before her, arms crossed, and clearly annoyed. "I sought you were being a rittru too eager to pour out se sake. Two can pray at se game of secrets, Benenum, and I know you too weru to faru for your tricks." He looked away for a moment. "Just as I know you wourud hab left wisout saying fareweru."_

_She blushed a little from embarrassment. "I said nothing because your intentions have become too obvious over the past few years. I see it in your eyes whenever you look at me, but I… I…."_

"_But you stiru rong for sis Craudis, do you not?" he finished for her. "Eben sough it was your sister sat_ he _wanted."_

_She didn't look at him._

"_I am not as good at hiding what is in my heart as you, boku no koibito," he whispered. "I see se pain in your eyes, and I want onry for it to go away. If I hab to let you go for sat, sen I wiru."_

"_I have to know, Hatchiman. And… not just for me. I cannot take back what I've done to Kinyoubi, but I can… at least…."_

_He stepped forward, and took her hands in his. The contact sent a strange shiver down her spine; she'd only touched him once before, when she'd first met him and wept against him. He had refused to lay a hand on her since, determined to allow her body time to heal from the abuse it had gone through on Plun-Darr. "I understand sat sis is somesing you must do, and I wiru not stop you. Now, understand what I promise you: I wiru wait for your return."_

"_Don't you_ dare _come after me, I don't care what your ancestors tell you!"_

_He rolled his eyes a little, as if used to her behavior. "I just said I wiru_ wait _for you to return." _

_She frowned. "So convinced that I will, are you?"_

"_No. Wheser or not you return is your choice. You onry need remember sat if you do, I wiru be here for you. It matters not how rong it is to me." He placed a short sword in her hands. "Take sis as a reminder of my promise."_

_She sighed, attaching the short sword to the belt over her hips. It immediately disappeared. She gave Hatchiman a confused look. "What is a samurai doing with the weapon of a ninjutsu?"_

_Though his expression remained blank, the reddening of his cheeks betrayed his slight embarrassment to her. "I had you in mind when I bought it. I am sure se irony wiru amuse you for some time to come."_

* * *

"What the _hell_ did he see in her?" Snarf yelped.

"Apparently more than you do," the Guardian replied. "He spent nine years with Venenum, and as far as I'm concerned, he was quite instrumental in taming her."

"I hope he's come to his senses over time. It's been, what, over twenty years since then?"

"How much more do we need to know, Guardian?" Lion-O asked. "Forgive me if I act impatient, but—"

"You want to make a long story short," the Guardian sighed. "Too late, don't you think? However, there isn't much more to tell you, so don't worry too much about it."

"Okay, then, so we know that Venenum hitched a ride with a couple of Berbils to get back to Thundera," Lion-O summed up. "Did anyone recognize her body as Kinyoubi's?"

"The Thundercats might have, if they'd looked past her scars and eyes, which was why she avoided most of them like a plague and even now will not appear around Snarf without that scarf over her face. At any rate, Hyou recruited her practically the moment she set foot on Thundera. He saw in her the perfect material for a spy.

"She accepted because it would keep her close to Claudis _and_ give her an excuse to avoid the other Thundercats. She was… distracted, however, by someone else."

"Distracted?" Bengali asked.

"Well, here, let me show you…."

* * *

_Venenum was depressed. Though she knew she still looked enough like Kinyoubi to pass as her, her voice seemed to have changed beyond recognition. Of course, it probably didn't help that she deliberately spoke with the accent she'd picked up from Hatchiman, but she thought that Claudis's lingering feelings would at least let him recognize the body for what it had once been._

_However, he was now blind due to an accident of some sort a few years ago, and when he listened to her he heard only Venenum, not Kinyoubi. Even the one time he'd placed a hand on her, touching her on the shoulder to congratulate her on being chosen by Hyou, there was no spark of recognition. She assumed the scars where his hand had rested kept him from recognizing the feel._

_Venenum wandered the town, deliberately avoiding the people by using the skills she had learned as a ninjutsu. She was near them, but they did not see her, and she was fine with that._

_So, of course, when she walked to an outdoor café and sat down, it took her by some surprise when a male from the tiger clan saw her and sat down at the same table as she. She stared at him curiously, frowning when she realized she'd seen him before. "Hab you been forowing me?" she snapped._

* * *

"Hey," Lion-O commented. "That guy could pass for Tygra. Hair's a little long, though."

* * *

_The tiger blushed. "Um… no. Not really. It's just… I'd seen you a couple of times before, but you'd disappeared before I could get any closer to you. I couldn't even find those strange glowing footsteps you leave behind."_

_She raised an eyebrow._ Glowing footsteps? _she thought._ Didn't Hatchiman mention something similar? _"You _want _to get croser to me?" she asked instead, refusing to mention the strange phenomenon._

_The tiger smiled, a little bold, but certainly not arrogant. "If you'd let me. I've had a difficult time getting you out of my head ever since I saw you. I have to admit that there's something about you that intrigues me."_

"_Weru, sat would be your funeral, sen."_

_His grin widened. "I don't suppose I could at least have a name, could I?"_

"_Fine. Your name wiru be 'Oberconfident'."_

_He laughed. For some reason, his laughter was infectious, and she couldn't help grinning. "I suppose I deserve that, coming right up here without so much as a by-your-leave. Mind if I try again?"_

_She pretended to think. "I suppose…."_

_He held his hand out to her. "Greetings. My name is Tigris. I'm very pleased to meet you, miss…?"_

_She debated telling him she was too old to be a "miss", but upon studying his face a little closer, she realized that he was probably ten years older that even Jaga._ Well, then, _she thought,_ to him, someone my age probably is a "miss". _"Hajime-mashite, Tigris. My name is Benenum. Douzo yoroshiku."_

"'_Benenum'? Oh,_ Venenum. _Latin for poison." His smile never wavered, just as his brown eyes never left hers. "I don't suppose you'd consider it rude if I ordered us some coffee, would you? I'll pay."_

_Despite herself, she was becoming intrigued by him. "Well… only if you pay."_

* * *

"_Is something wrong, my Lord?" Hyou asked Claudis as he stiffly sat beside the Thundercat Lord at the empty meeting table. "You've a strange look on your face."_

"_That new spy, the one you said would make a good chemicals expert… where did you find her?"_

"_She same to port on a Berbil spaceship. Rubus and I are looking into her background, but so far we've found nothing about her. Why?"_

_Claudis put his hands over his eyes, as if to keep from seeing something. He'd aged so much in the fast fourteen years, as had Leaena and Jaga, that he was barely recognizable as the young swain that had gone after his first love single-mindedly. "She's like Kinyoubi," he whispered reluctantly. "She smells like her, feels like her, sounds like her…."_

"_Doesn't look much like her, though. This Venenum is atrociously scarred, with blond hair and green eyes. I'm far more likely to say she's from the golden cat tribes. Besides, even if by some strange coincidence she _was _Kinyoubi at one point, she isn't now. She's born at least one child, and she is literally poisonous."_

"_Yes, her personality is quite nasty if what Aequo has to say about her is true…."_

"_No, no, my Lord. Not her personality:_ her. _She is the paranoid type that eats poison in order to build an immunity to it. However, she has been consuming so much poison every day for only the gods know how many years, that the lethal amount she eats now have gotten into every bodily fluid she has in her body. Just sharing a syringe needle with her would literally be fatal; no one would survive an intimate relationship with her."_

_Claudis raised an eyebrow at Hyou. "Why do I hear hints of longing in that information? Has your disease progressed so far that suicide is starting to look attractive to you?"_

"_I would be lying if I said I wasn't in pain, my Lord. As it is, I should've died a year ago from this. The fact that I haven't only means I'm living on borrowed time." He sighed blissfully. "I have to admit, though, that if I did have it in me to commit suicide, finding it in her bed would certainly be the way to go."_

"_Well, before you decide to do anything that stupid, just give me one promise."_

"_I promise I won't commit suicide."_

"_Not that." Claudis placed his fingers against his temple as if he were hurting. "I want you to keep my suspicions to yourself. I especially do not want Leaena to hear of it; she knows I still long for Kinyoubi, but I don't want her to think that I have no love for her, either. And there's no telling how our son would take it if he found out about this. He might only be two, but he's very smart for his age."_

"_I understand, my Lord. I promise I will take this conversation to the grave."_

* * *

The was a long moment of silence. "Um… did Hyou ever tell Venenum what all that poison had done to her body?" Lion-O asked hesitantly.

"No," the Guardian replied. "He thought she knew; she didn't."

Snarf snorted. "I take it Tigris found out the hard way. Any man that would want to be anywhere near that bitch for an extended period of time—"

"Snarf," the Guardian interrupted slowly, "Tigris was the father of Serica, Tygra, and Bengali."

Snarf shut up very fast, looking at Bengali.

The white tiger was sitting on the floor, his legs folded in front of him with his arms around his needs. Thankfully, it seemed as if he hadn't heard the snarf's comment, but he looked miserable. "So that's what happened to him," he whispered.

Lion-O slowly sat down beside his friend. "Bengali, are you okay?"

"I don't know. I remember for three months, Father was very excited and happy, like I'd never seen him before. He was always telling us about the woman he'd found, even going so far as to say he might even marry her. Serica likened it to the time when Mother had been alive, and Tygra just thought it was funny to see Father acting like a love-struck teenager.

"One morning, the hospital got an emergency call from an anonymous person; Father had been poisoned and died in his sleep, but no one could figure out _how_ he'd been poisoned. There were traces of it in his body, but no evidence of how it had even gotten there to begin with." Bengali looked up at the Book Guardian. "What was really going on? I have to know… and so do Serica and Tygra."

"Tigris proposed to Venenum after three months, she accepted," the Guardian told them simply. "She was the one that gave the anonymous call; if you think your life sucks for finding out your father was dead too late to save him, imagine what it must've been like for her to fall in love, and wake up the morning after giving herself to that love… only to realize that she was the one that killed him. And it _wasn't_ a pleasant death."

* * *

_Venenum, once again, watched a funeral while hidden a nearby tree. This time, however, she was weeping horribly; she could still feel the combined dismay and pain of realizing what had happened to Tigris that morning. The guilt that overwhelmed her filled her mind with irrational thoughts._ I must be evil, _she thought, ignoring the rain that poured out of the sky like a waterfall,_ to destroy so much without even thinking about it. Everything I touch dies, no good comes out of anything I do….

No wonder Claudis did not recognize me. I am nothing like Kinyoubi, nothing at all. I'm just her evil twin.

_She could see Tigris's three children, their backs to her, sitting together beside the coffin as a priest said prayers over it. The eldest two, though she'd been told that they clashed like fire and ice, seemed to have come to a temporary truce at the funeral. The youngest, barely having turned twenty, could only hold his older sister's hand while she wept uncontrollably._

I… am truly… a horrible creature….

_Heartbroken, she slipped out of the tree and ran off to find a place to hide, so that she could lick her wounds in peace._

* * *

_Months later, Leaena had no idea what it was that had prompted her awake. Tired from taking care of her young son, she'd laid down for a nap, only to wake up barely thirty minutes later. There was a nagging feeling in her mind, something that she did not recognize right away._

_She sat up, slightly startled when she saw that Pampas was beside the bed. "Is there something wrong?" she asked the spy. "I can feel something, but I don't know what…."_

"_You need to come with me," the spy replied. "And you best take Lion-O; that way we can claim we were taking him for a walk."_

_Confused, Leaena did as the spy suggested, taking her son out of his crib and dressing him warmly so that he wouldn't catch a chill in the cold weather. She followed after Pampas, running to catch up as soon as they were outside. She paused only once, when Pampas had stopped to double-check their direction._

_There were glowing footsteps upon the ground. Even the snow that fell from the sky couldn't cover them._

_Pampas, however, was acting as if she couldn't see them. "Where did he say they were—?" After a moment of indecision, she started down the same street that the footsteps led._

_Leaena followed, asking her son at one point, "Do you see any footsteps, Lion-O?"_

_The two-year-old looked around curiously, then shook his head._

Only I can see them? _ Leaena frowned._

_After another ten minutes or so, Pampas finally led Leaena into the forest, heading for a large cave not too far from the edge. At first, it seemed like a regular cave, but once they got deeper into the structure, the walls smoothed out as if they were polished, rugs covered the floor and tapestries hung from the walls to conserve heat. The random raw bones scattered on the floor and occasional blood stain on the rugs hinted that this was perhaps Pampas's favorite place to enjoy her victims._

_In the very back of the cave, however, was their goal. She lay on her side on a thick mattress, sweating and crying, Hyou kneeling over her and trying to soothe her as best as he could. The moment she turned her blond head so that her green eyes looked into Leaena's, she screamed, "Not her, not her, _not her!"

"_It will_ have _to be her, if you truly mean what you've said!" Hyou snapped irritably. "I'm too weak now to do much more at this point!"_

_Leaena stared. "Kinyoubi?" she whispered in astonishment._

"_She is not Kinyoubi," Pampas told Leaena. "We have no clue as to whom this creature truly is, only that she is called Venenum and speaks with an accent. I doubt she was even raised on Thundera at all. That, however, is not why I've brought you here."_

"_Why, then?"_

"_She's pregnant. She has four months left, but there's a_ very _big problem. She is the spy recruit I told you of, the one that eats poison. It's coming back to bite her; she wishes to bear the child, but the poison in her system constantly threatens to kill it. Hyou has done all he can to keep the babe alive, but he is weakening fast."_

_Leaena handed Lion-O to Pampas, walking briskly over to Venenum. That nagging feeling in the back of her mind grew, and as soon as she touched the female's shoulder, she knew what it was._

_She could feel Kinyoubi again._

_She hid her shock behind a frozen mask of concern; the feeling was not as strong as it had once been, but it was there. The green eyes of the pregnant female glared up at her, daring her to reveal the truth._

"_I can take over from here, Hyou," Leaena told the leopard male, reaching out and placing a hand upon Venenum's slightly distended belly. Her hand glowed green as she Healed the unborn babe, frowning a little upon noticing that it took twice as much effort to use her power. She looked back into those green eyes, keeping her face blank while looking into the damaged mirror image of her sworn sister. "I will ask no questions, so you have to give no answers. Just cooperate with me, and we can get this done with little effort. Understood?"_

_Venenum frowned back, her eyes narrowing suspiciously. "Fine," she finally replied._

* * *

_Between the two of them, Hyou and Leaena were barely able to keep Venenum's body from rejecting the pregnancy. Because of the female's refusal to be taken to a hospital, the Thundercat and spy were extremely limited in what they could do. They didn't even realize that Venenum was carrying twins until they were born._

_Which only made the former want to bang his head against something for not realizing it sooner._

_Venenum, however, acted very strangely. She refused to even look at the babies, crying and weeping the entire time, telling Leaena to give them to someone else. "I do not deserb sem," she whimpered, curled up in a ball with her back to them. "I wiru onry ruin sem. Sey need a better mother san me."_

_Hyou and Leaena glanced at each other briefly before looking down at the two newborn babies that she held. "Then why did you want to keep them so badly?"_

_The reply was long in coming. "Seir fasser deserbed better san me… so do sey…."_

_Hyou looked horrified, as if he'd just remembered something. "No wonder no one could figure out what had happened," he muttered._

_Leaena cradled the twins gently, thinking carefully. "Hyou, doesn't Rubus normally take a new spy away for five years for training, in order to place him or her accurately?"_

"_What's that got to do with anything?" At her glare, he cleared his throat. "Yes, my Lady, normally we do. Venenum has been very well trained by someone else already, though, so we thought—"_

"_I think she needs to be taken away." Leaena gave him a look that brooked no arguments. "I suggest that you and Rubus arrange that soon. You can also take your other recruit Serica at the same time, and get two birds with one stone. You never know, maybe Venenum can teach the tigress a new trick or two."_

_Hyou thought carefully. "It will be arranged as you suggest, my Lady," he said finally, nodding to her so that she knew he understood. Venenum had killed someone she cared for, and now found herself in the position of needing to get away from her own children. Taking her away would guarantee such privacy and time to recover from the trauma._

_And in the meantime…._

_Leaena walked home with the twins, holding her head proud and smiling a little._ Perhaps Venenum is not Kinyoubi, _she thought,_ but there is no doubt in my mind that the two are related. I don't know how, but Kinyoubi is alive somewhere. Maybe, after five years have passed, Venenum will have healed enough to at least impart to me Kinyoubi's whereabouts. She must know. _She continued on her way, light on her feet, unaware that her heart would give out without warning in a year's time, killing her instantly._

_As soon as she entered the Lair, she smiled. "Oh, Claudis, were you waiting for me?"_

"_I was actually about to take this one for a walk," Claudis replied with a gentle smile. He held onto Lion-O's hand loosely; the boy was attempting to walk on his own. Her husband squinted at her. "Are you carrying something, Leaena? I can't quite tell."_

"_I found two babies on the doorstep," she fibbed. "A boy and a girl. I asked around the town, no one knows where they came from, and there's no news of babies being kidnapped from the hospital. Then the thought crossed my mind… I've been unable to conceive since Lion-O. Perhaps the gods heard my lament and sent these two to be his playmates?" She deliberately left the main question unsaid, knowing that he would be able to figure out what she wanted._

_He smiled a little at her. "I'm sure I'll hear about it if I dare tell you 'no'. I certainly have no problems with it, though I'm sure Jaga will raise a fuss. I think Snarf's cousin Egbert will be a good nursemaid to these two, at least while they're so young. I don't suppose the mother thought to leave names in the basket with the children?"_

"_No, but I thought of a very nice pair while I was walking back home: Wily Kit and Wily Kat." She grinned. "We can shorten them to Kit-Kat when they misbehave!" She knelt down. "Lion-O, come say hi to your new playmates!"_

_Lion-O obeyed, letting go of his father's hands to step forward and peer curiously into the faces of the babies that his mother held._

* * *

The three Thundercats stared at the Book Guardian in complete shock. "Venenum… _Venenum _is the Thunder kittens' mother?" the snarf finally managed to spit out. "And she never told us?"

"She never knew," the Guardian replied. "She never wanted to even know what sex her children were. She returned to the Lair only once more before leaving for Plun-Darr with Rubus, Aequo, and Serica. Neither Hyou nor Leaena lived long enough to inform her, and Pampas never thought to tell her. As far as Venenum was concerned, Tigris's last two children being raised by someone else was enough to soothe her wounded heart." There was a pause. "The kittens themselves, on the other hand, just might suspect something…."

"Oh?" Bengali asked. "Why?"

"Let me show you what it is the twins remember as nothing more than a dream, though in truth it really happened…."

* * *

_Wily Kit sat up in bed, glancing at the clock beside her. One in the morning. Today was her and her twin brother's fifth birthday, but it was not the usual excitement that had woken her. "Wily Kat," she whispered, climbing out of her bed to poke her brother awake. "Wily Kat, I think there's something strange going on."_

"_Whatizit?" he mumbled, rubbing the sleep from his eyes as she took his hand and helped him out of his own bed. "I want to go back to sleep…."_

"_Don't be a sissy! Come on." She led him out into the hall, where they both stopped and looked down in surprise. "Glowing footsteps?"_

_Wily Kat scratched his head. "Do you think we should follow them?"_

_The kittens followed the footsteps quickly, holding each other's hands so that they would be together when they came to the owner of the footprints. Dashing through the Lair in the dead of night, it wasn't until they came to the head of the building that they found their strange quarry._

_She flipped around to look at them in surprise. In the moonlight, her blond hair appeared almost silver, though her green eyes flashed brightly with an unearthly luminance. The scars across her face were pale against her orange fur, and the scarf she'd just removed fluttered from her hand to the floor as she looked at them in surprise. "Wha—?"_

"_Hello!" Wily Kit said without the slightest hint of fear. For that matter, it didn't even occur to her to be afraid of the woman. "My name's Wily Kit! Are you hiding from someone?"_

_The female's look became a little sad. "No. I… am praying for someone. Several, in fact." Though the twins didn't know it, Venenum didn't even bother with an accent around them. "Actually, quite a large number."_

"_Oh."_

"_Do you want us to keep you company?" Wily Kat asked. He bounced over to the female with Wily Kit in tow. "Who are you praying for?"_

_The female raised an eyebrow at the pair. "Quite the audacious pair, are you?"_

"_Aud…aud-aye-shout…?" Wily Kit frowned. "What's that mean?"_

"_It means you're annoying."_

"_That's what Panthro says," Wily Kat whined. He reached up and tugged at a lock of the female's hair. "So, who are you praying for?"_

_She smiled a little at them. "Yes, definitely audacious." She sighed, looking up at the stars. "There are a lot of people I knew… that are gone now. I pray for them. And also for my children, wherever they are."_

"_You don't know where your kids are?" Wily Kit asked. "We don't know where our mama and papa are, either."_

"_Really?" She petted them on their heads. "I'm sure that wherever they are, they're thinking of you."_

_The twins suddenly grinned simultaneously. "Maybe you're our mama!" they chirped._

_She laughed. Though neither child knew it, it had been the first time in nearly six years that she had been able to do so, not since she'd been with Tigris._ "My _children, Thundercats? That will be the day!"_

"_Thunder-Mama, Thunder-Mama!" Wily Kit chanted, dancing around the adult merrily._

"_Well, can't _you _be our mama?" Wily Kat asked._

"_It would be nice if I could, but unfortunately I leave tomorrow. I've no idea when I'll be back."_

"_How about when you come back, then?"_

_She patted them on the heads again. "We shall see, you audacious cubs. We shall see."_

* * *

"I didn't really need to show you that, but I think it's cute," the Book Guardian chuckled.

Bengali narrowed his eyes, thinking carefully. "Wait a minute… every single person that found Venenum saw her footprints. What the heck is up with that?"

"I suspect Mumm-Rana has something to do with it. The magic concerning Venenum's footsteps has that kind of feel. Whenever Venenum was in mental danger, someone would see her footsteps and come to her aid. Hatchiman found her when her mind was ready to break, and saved her. Leaena found her when she was suffering from a broken heart, and gave her the comfort and security she needed. And though it wasn't obvious from what I showed you, the Thunder kittens arrived just when she was debating whether or not she'd throw herself off of Cat's Lair, and gave her something to look forward to."

Bengali felt a slow smile cross his lips. "She's in Mumm-Ra's clutches now, isn't she? She's no doubt in trouble, whether or not it's by choice, and her footsteps will lead us right to her."

"That's what my educated guess says."

"And when we find her, we'll find Kinyoubi!" Snarf cheered. "Kinyoubi _has_ to be there! Leaena could feel her!"

"Leaena could all too possibly have recognized the original owner of the body," the Guardian corrected the snarf. "Not the same thing at all."

"At any rate," Lion-O said, helping Bengali to his feet, "if we can prove that Venenum and Tigris are the Thunderkitten's parents, that will throw a wrench in whatever plan Baron Tass has come up with this time. We'll obviously have to try and see if we can find Kinyoubi, too; if we can get a full confession from her, we'll have the evidence we need to put the Baron behind bars and _keep_ him there."

"Then allow me to add one last thing before you go tearing off," the Guardian said. "Pampas found incriminating evidence against the Baron and had it on her person as everyone was fleeing the dying Thundera. It's still near her remains, inside of an indestructible canister, within the ruins of the Old Capitol."

* * *

Lion-O ran into the control room, followed closely by Bengali and Snarf. Serica and Aequo were there, and they seemed quite pleased with themselves. "We found her general location, Lord Lion-O," Aequo stated, flipping on the viewing screen. The remains of Mumm-Ra's Black Pyramid came into view. "I have no idea what in the world she's doing in that run-down mess, but—" He shrugged.

"Were you guys able to find any useful information while talking to your Book of Omens?" Serica asked as Ater appeared out of nowhere and clung to her. "It would be nice to have a back-up if you guys can't rescue her before the Baron appears later this afternoon."

"Afternoon?" Snarf yelped. "How long have we been in the book?"

"Three days." She raised an eyebrow. "Why? How long did you think it was? Three hours?"

"Where are the other Thundercats?" Lion-O asked. "We've got a lot to do, and we've all got to move fast."

Aequo reached over and hit the alarm button, setting it blaring throughout the Lair. "Control room, now," he said into the intercom system. "Lion-O's returned." He grinned. "They should be here in about two seconds."

Aequo wasn't far from wrong; within only a few minutes Lynx-O, Cheetara, Snarfer, Wily Kit and Wily Kat came flying into the room, as did—quite surprisingly—Tygra and Pumyra. "What are you two doing here?" Lion-O asked in surprise.

"You are never going to believe this," Pumyra said. "Hatchiman came flying to the Lair not two minutes after you left to go into the Book of Omens. He practically threw Tygra and I onto that mechanical horse of his, saying that we had to come help you right away, no matter what. He's taking care of both the Lair and Tyri."

"He knew that we're looking for Kinyoubi," Tygra added. "Don't ask me how, he didn't bother to explain. And," he held out a katana in confusion, "he said to give this to her sister when we found her. I don't suppose the Book of Omens might've given you some information to explain that?"

"Let's just say we got _far _more out of that trip than we could have believed we would." Lion-O thought quickly. "Wily Kit, Wily Kat, I'm going to want you two keeping watch over the Lair with Cheetara. Go get ready whatever you think you might need, now." Confused, the kittens did as they were told; as soon as they were gone, Lion-O turned to Pumyra. "I need you to get blood from the kittens, as well as from Serica, Tygra, and Bengali." He looked at Aequo. "You're going to help her. I don't suppose you have any of Venenum's blood on hand?"

The mutant nodded, just as confused as Pumyra. "Yes, we do. May I ask why the strange order, or am I not allowed to know?"

"I'm sure between the two of you, you'll figure it out." He turned to Serica. "Pampas's remains are in the Old Capitol; I need you, Lynx-O, and Tygra to locate them. She had information against Baron Tass on her when she was killed, and I need you to find it."

She nodded. "Can do."

"Snarfer, if Baron Tass comes early, it's up to you to stall him. I don't care what you have to do. Chew on his leg if necessary."

"Understood, Lion-O!"

"Bengali, Snarf, and I are going after Venenum. Now, let's cross our fingers and pray to Jaga that nothing goes wrong."

* * *

The Old Capitol was where the capitol city of Thundera had stood long before the planet itself was destroyed. There was nothing but ruins now in the Old Capitol, and few Thunderians ventured there; too many bones still lay where the bodies had died, and for many, looking at what had once been their homes was too painful.

Lynx-O flew the Thunder Strike to the center of the Old Capitol, landing just outside the remains of the original Cat's Lair. Tygra and Serica leapt out after the old man, their commitment to their duty allowing them to set aside their decades-long argument for a time. Ater followed after his foster mother, taking her hand as Lynx-O knelt down to the ground and placed his hand against it.

"I would assume Pampas was another spy," the old man said, his ears glowing as he used his power of touch to figure out where everything in the city lay. "Is there anything that only she would've had on her that no one else in the city would?"

Serica squatted beside Lynx-O and put his free hand to the back of her neck. "There's a chip there," she told him, "right at the base of the spinal cord. When a spy is killed in the normal course of duty where the body is accessible or dies from old age, the chip is removed and destroyed. She would've had one exactly like mine in exactly the same place, but it would still be with her body because no one would've been able to go back and get it."

Lynx-O concentrated for only a moment more. His ears lit up again. "I found her. She's 234 yards to the east, under a giant pillar. Only what remains of her left hand can be seen."

Tygra and Serica ran forward at top speed, with Ater and Lynx-O pulling up the rear. When they got to the pillar, the former two looked disturbed. "That is a _really_ rotten way to die," Serica sighed. "We're going to have to move that thing to get to her."

"Move it?" Tygra frowned. "Even with the Thunder Tank, we would've be able to move _that."_ He pulled out his bolo-whip. "The best we can do is try to break it in two." He slashed out his hand, and the end of the whip went flying, it's three sections hitting the pillar and causing a ring of fire to appear around it's width, directly over where the spy's body was. He cursed as nothing more than that happened. "Damn! It's too thick!"

"Nonsense," his sister chastised him, stepping forward. The flames didn't seem to bother her. "It just needs a little help, that's all." She suddenly pulled up her leg, spun around to give herself more momentum, and kicked the pillar directly over where the ring of fire was. There was a loud crack, and the pillar split in two from the combined force of the fire and blow. The break, while it was directly over Pampas's bones, was however not quite large enough for any of the three adults to fit in.

Ater could, though.

As soon as the fire was out, the child dashed in before his foster mother could stop him. "Ater!" Serica yelped after him. _"Damn_ it, boy, if I didn't like you so much, I'd _strangle_ you!"

Ater came out again after a moment, covering in soot, dirt, and small pieces of rubble. He held out his hands. In one was the tiny chip that had resided inside Pampas. In the other was a canister, distorted from heat and pressure, but still in one piece.

Tygra took the latter, forcing it open and pulling out the papers inside. He whistled in astonishment. "Oh, my…."

Serica smirked. "Juicy, is it?"

Tygra couldn't help but grin back. "Oh, yes. With a witness in addition to these papers, I think Baron Tass could be in quite a serious amount of trouble…."

* * *

"I don't understand this one bit," Pumyra complained, rearranging the medical mask on her face so that it didn't bother her. She'd been griping for the past thirty minutes, but as Aequo hadn't said anything, she figured he didn't mind. "I wish Lion-O had just told us whatever it was the Book Guardian had told him. It would go faster, and I wouldn't be spending my time attempting to figure out what the hell it is he wants me to do with five samples of blood!" She lifted one of the vials to the light, shaking it carefully to make sure it hadn't congealed too much for her to use it in the blood test program in front of her.

"Maybe he didn't tell us because it was something we wouldn't believe without seeing it for ourselves," Aequo replied. He made a choking noise that sounded suspiciously like a laugh held in check. "Um… Pumyra… I don't suppose Tygra happened to tell you anything about his father?"

"His father was poisoned eleven years before Thundera was originally destroyed," she replied without thinking. "No one could figure out how, and the case was dropped as unsolvable. Why?"

Aequo held out the test results he'd run with Venenum's blood and the samples he had from Wily Kit and Wily Kat. "Remember how I told you I wouldn't let you handle the poisoner's blood because of what her choice of food had done to her body? Now, what would happen if someone were to have sex with her?"

"I can think of a lot of men who'd agree it'd be the best way to go." Pumyra took the paper from him, scanned the results quickly, stopped, shook her head, and read them again more carefully. Her jaw dropped. "Wha—? It's not possible! They can't be hers!"

"And yet the tests say otherwise."

"But it's not physically possible; she wouldn't have been able to carry them full term! With the lethal amounts of poison in her system, the kittens themselves would've been poisoned and killed during the pregnancy!"

"Maybe she had a Healer help her; we'll figure out the whys later. In the meantime, check the blood work of your husband and his two siblings against the twins. I have a suspicion that this whole fiasco might've turned up far more than we thought was possible."

* * *

"And this is the dining room!" Snarfer said proudly, grinning broadly at the Baron and his annoying secretary.

"No kidding," Baron Tass replied with no interest. He pointed his thumb behind him at the control room where Cheetara and the kittens were, motioning also towards the laboratory that Pumyra and Aequo were busy in. "What's going on in _those_ two rooms?"

"Ah… which two rooms?" He grabbed the baron's hand and immediately started leading him in the opposite direction. "Here, let me show you the kitchen, or the other dining room, or the ball room…!"

* * *

The Thunder tank rumbled to a halt outside of the Black Pyramid. Snarf leapt out eagerly, immediately running all over the ground to try and find the glowing footprints. "I can't find them!" he whined after a moment.

Lion-O frowned, scanning around as well. "I can't see anything either, Snarf."

"But I can," Bengali replied, landing beside the snarf. "I don't know why Lion-O can't see them, but it's not too difficult for me to see that Kinyoubi is the only thing on your mind, Snarf. It's _Venenum's_ footsteps that glow, not her sister's."

"Here are two letters, see if you can figure them out," the snarf snapped irritably. "Eff yu!"

"This is neither the time nor place, you two," Lion-O told them. "You can argue later for all I care, but right now we have to get to Venenum and Kinyoubi!"

Bengali led the way, as he could see the footprints, with Snarf and Lion-O following close behind. The path didn't lead into the Pyramid's remains, as they'd assumed it might, but rather off into a tunnel dug into the nearby area. The further into the tunnel they got, the colder it became. It was easy to see, though; there were plenty of lanterns hanging from the ceiling and walls. "Something tells me we're expected," Lion-O muttered.

The tunnel opened up into an enormous cavern, and in the far back of it something sparkled. Curious, the three Thundercats got closer, only for Lion-O to stop in shock. He recognized the crystal-like substance that glittered in the light, even as Bengali yelped in shock and ran forward to Venenum's unconscious body at the base of the structure.

_That's the exact same kind of crystal that the Shadow Master had used to trap Father's soul,_ Lion-O thought. He knew without Snarf's horrified shout what was inside of it. _So this is where Kinyoubi's soul has been trapped for the past thirty years, is it? Mumm-Ra must've brought her with him from Third Earth when he came to Thundera…._

"Kinyoubi!" Snarf screeched, running up to the crystal and banging his fists against it. Kinyoubi's soul, not having aged a day from when she'd left Thundera, floated inside peacefully, but didn't even twitch at the snarf's calls. "Kinyoubi, wake up! Kinyoubi, Kinyoubi!"

Bengali checked Venenum carefully, removing the scarf from her face and holding his fingers against her neck to try and feel for a pulse. "Lion-O," he whispered, "I think she's dead…."

A familiar evil chuckling started to ring throughout the cavern. "No, she's no more dead than her persistent sister," a voice centuries old said with delight. "Just as I sealed Kinyoubi away thirty years ago, I sealed Venenum away as well. Poetic, don't you think? Two sisters that share the same body, both fighting for control over it, only for both to lose it… to one such as me."

Lion-O drew the Sword of Omens and looked around the cavern carefully. "What are you planning, Mumm-Ra?" he asked. "There's no point to your keeping Venenum and Kinyoubi trapped!"

"Oh, isn't there? Kinyoubi is a Thundercat; I knew that sooner or later someone carrying the Sword of Omens would come to get her. I'm just lucky it was you. As for Venenum, I think she has a very nice body, well poisoned and tortured for decades. Once I possess it, I'll be able to move freely about on Thundera without any of your fellow Thundercats being the wiser. You three, of course, will be dead."

Bengali slowly stood up, snarling. "The only way you'll lay a hand on her is over my dead body, Mumm-Ra!"

The Eye of Thundera started growling, emphatically. Lion-O tensed up, ready for the ensuing danger.

The evil chuckling took on a sinister note. "Oh, thank you so much for your permission, Bengali! I didn't really need it, but since you insist—"

"Bengali!" Snarf screamed. "Look out!"

Bengali went to turn around, but never managed it. A short sword burst from his chest and standing behind him, a maniacal grin on her face—"Venenum!" he gasped.

"_Am_ I?" It was not her voice, but rather Mumm-Ra's that issued forth from her mouth. She pulled the short sword out of Bengali, licking a little of the blood from the blade as he fell to the ground. "Revenge is sweet," Mumm-Ra/Venenum said almost absently, "but I have to admit that Thundercat blood is even sweeter." The laughter that echoed throughout the cavern seemed to mock Bengali as he clutched his hand over his wound to try and stop the bleeding.

Lion-O stared in horror at Mumm-Ra/Venenum. _What do I do?_ he thought in panic_. If I attack Mumm-Ra while he's in Venenum's body, I might kill the body by accident, and then_ both _Venenum and Kinyoubi will be lost!_

For all that Lion-O was confused, however, the Sword of Omens was _not._ Recognizing Mumm-Ra/Venenum as a serious threat, the sword lengthened into its full size, positioning itself between the young lord and the ancient evil sorcerer.

Mumm-Ra/Venenum's smile grew, the green eyes taking on an even crazier tint than Venenum herself had ever had. "Are you going to destroy me, Lion-O? You should know what will happen if you do, just so you don't have any illusions of miracles. Should this body die, both Kinyoubi and Venenum will be released from their prisons, but _only_ to be sent to the Underworld, where even your friend Jaga cannot save them!"

He/she motioned the sword towards Bengali, who lay gasping in pain on the ground. "As for him, he's probably got only another five minutes left to live. I thought I'd be nice and not disfigure his corpse, so that his siblings can at least have an open-coffin funeral for him."

Lion-O felt his anger stir at the demon priest's words, barely keeping himself from lashing out. "Sword of Omens," he said quietly, "give me what I need to save them all!"

* * *

Snarf scurried forward to Bengali as Mumm-Ra/Venenum started to attack Lion-O ruthlessly. "Bengali, it'll be okay, just hang on, snarf, snarf!"

"I'm not so sure about that," the tiger groaned. "I'm starting to lose feeling in my limbs…."

"Just hold on and if you see any lights, _don't go towards them!"_ Snarf ran back to the crystal that Kinyoubi was trapped inside and started banging his hands against it. "Kinyoubi, wake up, please! We need you! Kinyoubi, please!"

There was no response from her.

"Damn it!" Desperate now, Snarf ran back to Bengali, hoping that maybe he could get the Thundercat to help him break the crystal. Bengali, however, had passed out. Snarf squealed in fright, only slightly soothed when he found that he could still feel a pulse in the tiger's neck. Barely. "Damn it, damn it, _damn it!"_ He pulled the Hammer of Thundera out of its holder, ran once more to Kinyoubi's prison, and started hammering at the crystal with every ounce of strength he had. "Kinyoubi, wake up! Please! The Thundercats need help! Lion-O's in trouble! _The son of Claudis and Leaena is in danger!"_

The crystal cracked. Looking up, Snarf nearly cried for joy when he saw that Kinyoubi's eyes were open.

* * *

Mumm-Ra was thoroughly enjoying himself. The thrill of victory gave him a source of energy he hadn't realized was possible, and using Venenum's body for his own purposes was probably one of the best ideas he'd ever had. The body itself remembered by instinct all the skills that Kinyoubi and Venenum had trained it for, and though smaller than what he was used to, its reflexes were surprisingly fast.

_Bengali's as good as dead,_ the devil priest thought with glee as he managed to slice into Lion-O's side with the short sword, _and the Lord of the Thundercats isn't far behind him!_ "I should've done this years ago, Thundercat," he jibed, dashing forward and stabbing his prey in the stomach. He'd been aiming for the heart, but the Sword of Omens had interfered and kept the blow from being fatal. "Maybe if I'd nabbed Cheetara's body, or perhaps even Pumyra's, I would've defeated you years ago!" He grinned and squeezed one of the ample breasts on his new body. "I have to admit, there are quite a few perks to being a woman!"

"You're a dried up has-been," Lion-O snarled, "and you won't win! Not now, not ever!"

"Strong words for a cub about to meet his demise."

"HO!" Light shot out of the sword, shooting towards Mumm-Ra. He made to dodge it, but froze with surprise as the light dashed around him and headed towards the back of the cavern.

"Oh, that was brilliant, Lion-O. You missed!"

The young lord smiled. "Did I?"

Mumm-Ra frowned, flipping around just in time to watch the blast from the sword hit the crystal that trapped Kinyoubi's soul. The crystal shattered, and Kinyoubi leapt out, glowing blue ever so slightly. Mumm-Ra snickered. "It's too late for you, Kinyoubi. You've been out of touch with this body for thirty years; it will never accept you back!"

"That will not keep me from doing everything in my power to defeat you, Mumm-Ra," she replied. The blue took on a greenish tinge. "I might be as good as dead, but I insist on returning that body to my sister!" That last was sung, not spoken.

"Defeat me, will you?" the devil priest mocked as she continued to hum. "What can you do, you weakling? Even when you were alive, you were one of the weakest Thundercats! The best thing you can do is Heal people by touching them, or in rare occasions, Healing them from a distance! You—" He froze, seeing the smirk on her face. "Oh, shit!" He ducked just in time to miss the blow that Lion-O had aimed at his head.

Even as the mummy watched, the wounds he'd inflicted on Lion-O healed in a burst of green light. "You cannot defeat us, Mumm-Ra!" Lion-O snapped. "Release Venenum's body!"

"I can't defeat you… but only as long as you've got Kinyoubi to Heal you!" Mumm-Ra leapt into the air, swinging around his body and chanting a spell over the short sword. The blade started glowing with an evil light. "If I destroy her soul, then you're as good as dead!"

Kinyoubi looked shocked as the devil priest flew down at her, unable to move from where she stood. Snarf however, got between her and the mummy like a shot. _"You keep your filthy hands off of Kinyoubi!" _the snarf shouted, tossing up one of Bengali's marbles and cracking it open with the Hammer of Thundera. A shield sprung up between Mumm-Ra an certain victory, protecting the lioness from his wrath.

"Damn you, you asinine creature!" A ball of magic appeared in Mumm-Ra's hand. "Once I've destroyed her, then you're next!" He choked as an arm snaked around his neck and caused the ball of magic to fly off in a random direction and explode elsewhere.

"Not on my watch, Mumm-Ra," Bengali growled from behind him.

"No! That's impossible! You're dead! I killed you!"

"You should've killed me faster; Kinyoubi was freed just in time to Heal my wounds and keep me alive! Now leave Venenum's body!"

"Never! This body is mine, now! Mine, mine! I won't let it go unless you can defeat me, and you can _never_ defeat me!"

**Guess again, Mumm-Ra.**

The devil priest looked over at the Sword of Omens in shock, realizing where the voice-that-was-not-a-voice had come from immediately. _No,_ he thought. _This is impossible!_

**It is **_**you,**_** Mumm-Ra, who can never defeat **_**me,**_ the Eye of Thundera informed him.

Enraged, Mumm-Ra pulled out of Bengali's grip and attacked like a madman.

* * *

"Snarf, snarf, Kinyoubi, what're we going to do?" Snarf whined. "We can't stop Mumm-Ra without killing your body, and if we don't do something, he'll destroy you completely!"

"No soul can ever be completely separated from its original body, Snarf," she told him, "trust that I know _that_ after being trapped for nearly thirty years. For all that Mumm-Ra may be in Venenum's body now, he must _still_ have a connection to his own."

"Just like you'll still die if your body is killed, even though you're not in it right now?"

"Exactly."

Snarf glanced over at where Bengali and Lion-O were fighting with Mumm-Ra/Venenum, the devil priest viciously and murderously going after the two Thundercats like a creature obsessed. "Snarf, snarf, I've an idea, Kinyoubi, but you have to stay here to make sure Mumm-Ra doesn't kill Lion-O or Bengali. The shield should still hold for another three minutes!"

"Hurry, Snarf!" she urged him. "My power might've been stored to overflowing for the past thirty years, but I can already feel myself starting to weaken."

Snarf didn't waste any time, running from the cavern and tunnel straight into the Black Pyramid. Just as he'd thought, Mumm-Ra's body resided in the safety of its sarcophagus. Scurrying around, Snarf found a wooden stake and a hammer, ran over to the body, and prepared to slam the stake through the mummy's heart.

He stopped. "What the hell am I doing?" he asked himself irritably. "Mumm-Ra's a mummy, not a vampire! And why the hell was there a stake and hammer lying on the floor by the cauldron?" The thought of Mumm-Ra destroying Kinyoubi popped into his mind. "Oh,_ fuck_ it!"

He hammered the stake through the mummy's heart (or at least, where it should have resided). Upon hearing the angry rumbling of the four Ancient Spirits of Evil statues mixed with a high-pitched scream of pain, Snarf booked it out of there as fast as he could.

* * *

Although Kinyoubi was Healing Lion-O and Bengali as fast as she could, the two of them were seriously starting to tire. _It's the Healing,_ Lion-O realized after a moment, while trying to catch his breath. _Kinyoubi's merely boosting the rate of our normal healing to an abnormal speed; it's draining us of our energy _and _hers just to keep us from getting killed!_

Mumm-Ra/Venenum stopped dead in her tracks, just as both Bengali and Lion-O were about to collapse. She grabbed her head in her hands and screamed in pain. "My body!" the devil priest shouted, looking around in horror. "What has happened to my body?" Mumm-Ra's soul was visibly torn from Venenum's body. Bengali dashed forward and caught her as the spirit fled, and Lion-O chased after it, only vaguely aware that Kinyoubi was barely a step behind him.

They chased Mumm-Ra right into the Black Pyramid, where the soul was reunited with its original body. Cursing violently, Mumm-Ra tore the stake out of his chest. "Damn that feeble creature!" he shouted angrily, stepping from his sarcophagus. "Can't he tell I'm not a vampire? And that spell took me two days to perform!"

"Nor will you get another shot at it!" Lion-O replied, jumping over the cauldron to land only a few feet from the mummy. "I'm going to stop you right here and now, Mumm-Ra!"

"Ha! I'd like to see you try, cub! Kinyoubi weakened you, Bengali, _and_ herself by Healing you of all the wounds I inflicted upon you! I seriously doubt you even have the strength to stop me in my _feeble_ form!"

Unfortunately, Mumm-Ra was right. Lion-O ground his teeth together in frustration, trying to think of something he could do.

"I will lend you as much of my power as I dare," he heard Kinyoubi behind him. "Let's hope it's enough…."

Lion-O opened his mouth to reply, but blinked in surprise as in front of him three glowing shapes formed from thin air. Two of them he recognized immediately. "Jaga! Father!" The third was a complete surprise. _"Mother?"_

"Use our strength to seal this evil away, my son," Claudis said. "With our combined power, you should be able to do it."

"WHAT?" Mumm-Ra shouted angrily. "No, no! Don't you dare interfere, you Obi-Wan-Kenobi-wannabes!" He raised his arms and started chanting as fast as he could. _"Ancient Spirits of Evil—"_

Lion-O raised the Sword of Omens over his head and shouted, "Thunder!" Jaga's glow increased greatly.

"—_transform—"_

"Thunder!" Claudis became more luminescent.

"—_this decayed form—"_

"Thunder!" Leaena's own shine became a bright green.

"—_into Mumm-Ra—"_

"THUNDERCATS—" What was left of Kinyoubi's energy flashed into life.

"—_the Ever—"_

"—HO!" On the last syllable, the four ghosts' voices joined with Lion-O's, just as their power was funneled away from them and channeled into the Eye of Thundera. A flash of powerful magic shot from the blade and flew straight into Mumm-Ra. The devil priest's shrieks pierced the air, but Lion-O ignored them. "Sword of Omens," he shouted, "seal this evil away!" The blast increased, throwing the mummy into his sarcophagus and slamming the lid shut on him. The heat of the magic melted the lid to the container, successfully sealing the mummy inside.

Only a tiny bright light, barely the size of a fingernail, still sat on the floor where the mummy had stood. Curious despite himself, Lion-O stepped forward and picked it up from the floor.

It was a tiny chip.

"That was Pumm-Ra's," Kinyoubi said; she was the only spirit still left. "I think you had better keep it. There's no telling when it might come in handy." She took his hand and led him out of the Pyramid. "Come, we have to bring Venenum around. There is much that I need to do, but I don't have a lot of time left."

Snarf had been cowering under a nearby outcropping of rock, but upon seeing Lion-O and Kinyoubi leave the pyramid unscathed, he flew out and immediately latched himself onto Kinyoubi's leg. "Thank Jaga you're alright! I was so terrified something would go wrong!"

He followed them back into the tunnel, where Bengali still sat cradling Venenum's body in his arms. He looked up wearily at Kinyoubi and frowned. "She's got a pulse, but it's like I'm holding an empty shell. Where's Venenum?"

"Who gives a damn?" Snarf snapped. "That bitch can—"

"Snarf," Kinyoubi interrupted gently, "Venenum is my sister. _ Please _remember that." As the chastised snarf quieted, she looked at Bengali briefly. "I will get your stepmother." She walked to the remains of the crystal that had held her and reached into the rubble. She pulled out Venenum's soul, which looked just like Venenum—without the scars. Kinyoubi cradled the unconscious soul of her sister gently, walking back to the body.

Snarf figured out precisely what she was going to do before she'd even gone two steps. "Kinyoubi, no! That's _your_ body, not hers! You don't deserve being trapped in the same body as Venenum!"

"No. I don't." Her footsteps never faltered.

He felt the blood drain from his face. "You can't," he whined. "You'll die…."

She smiled sadly at him. "I was dying thirty years ago, Snarf. I told Venenum to find a sorcerer with the hopes that he would put me out of my misery sooner. Mumm-Ra merely prolonged my agony, freezing me into a state that was dying without death. Even if I attempt to share the same body with Venenum again, I'll merely fade away." She knelt beside the body and placed Venenum's soul back into it. "It's the price I paid for keeping her alive during the ship-crash on Third Earth."

"The price _you_ paid?" Lion-O asked. "I don't understand."

"She was too weak; the mental trauma of a crash would've destroyed her. So I forcefully took control of the body during the crash. I suffered the trauma, so that she could live."

Bengali placed Venenum on the ground gently as Kinyoubi bent over her sister to try and wake her. Starting to stand up, he suddenly gasped and doubled over, clasping a hand to his chest, right over the area where he'd been wounded.

"Bengali!" Lion-O yelped as he saw fresh blood pour out from between the tiger's fingers. "What's happening?"

"The wound reopened," Kinyoubi replied calmly. She closed her eyes and placed her hand over Bengali's wound, humming a single note under her breath. Bengali sighed with relief as the pain left his eyes and the blood flow stopped. "No more extraneous activity; if the wound opens yet again, I will not be able to heal it. Your body won't be able to take it, and I've grown too weak." Her soul seemed to confirm her words; she was not glowing as brightly as before, and she was slowly becoming more transparent. "Your current healer will have to see to your condition as soon as possible. I cannot save you."

Venenum groaned. She opened her eyes, and upon seeing Kinyoubi's face above hers, she shrieked and hit her. "Get away from me!" she yelped.

Kinyoubi didn't even bat an eyelid. "Venenum, I need your help, just one last time. When it's over, I promise you will never see me again." She faded out a little more. "Not in this lifetime…."

Venenum looked at her suspiciously, ignoring the other Thundercats. "Help with what?"

* * *

Snarfer burst into the meeting room, where Tygra and Serica were going through Pampas's papers. "I can't hold that bastard and his bookkeeper off any longer!" he yelped. "What do I do, snarfer, snarfer? Lion-O hasn't come back yet!"

Tygra looked at his sister. She snorted and shrugged at him. "Don't look at _me_. That's _your _call, Mr. Second-In-Command."

He growled a little, annoyed, but unable to contradict her. "Bring Baron Tass to the front hall, Snarfer, and don't let him out of your sight again. Tell him the rest of us will join him shortly."

Snarfer flew out of the room. "Hey, Baron!" they heard him shout. "Would you like to see the front hall?"

Tygra looked at his sister. "We're going to have to stall the Baron with everything we've gotten until Lion-O gets back. Preferably without having to drag Pumyra's… um… activities into play. The evidence we found against him is convincing, but without some sort of eyewitness…." He shrugged.

She nodded. "Stall for as long as possible. Understood." She pulled her walkie-talkie out and turned it on. "Aequo, Ater, send the Thundercats to the front hall, pronto. Leave Lynx-O in charge of watch. And Aequo, make sure Pumyra brings whatever it is she's found with her."

* * *

Wily Kit and Wily Kat hid behind Tygra and Serica as the Thundercats confronted Baron Tass in the front hall. They would've preferred hiding behind Aequo—he was so large they were sure no one would want to cross him—but even _they_ knew a mutant in the Lair would cause problems if anyone found out about it.

"It's about time," Baron Tass said irritably. "And where's Lion-O? I'm sure he needs to be here for this."

"He'll be coming later," Serica replied. "I'm sure you can wait a few more minutes or so for him."

He looked her up and down with a disgusted look on his face. "And just who, pray tell, are _you?"_

"Official notary to the Thundercats," she said without missing a beat, casually taking the papers Pumyra handed to her without looking. "Also the older sister of the Thundercats Tygra and Bengali. I just got back from an extended fiasco of a trip. You might've heard about it; Thundera blew up."

His eyes twitched as she perused the papers. "Indeed…."

Wily Kit saw the tigress stiffen, though her face never changed its expression. "Tygra," she whispered to her brother, softly so that the Baron wouldn't hear. "Bengali's not our youngest sibling…."

Cheetara must've sensed that Serica had temporarily lost track, so she stepped forward and said, "I believe you told us you could furnish further evidence toward your claim that the Thunder kittens are your children…."

"What do you mean?" Tygra asked Serica in confusion as Mr. Grubber immediately started putting paper after paper into Cheetara's hands. "Mother died only a few days after Bengali was born, and Father didn't find another—" He looked shocked as Serica raised an eyebrow. "Wait…. Those last few months—"

"Exactly. He _did_ find another, remember? We just never got to meet her… officially."

Tygra glanced back at the confused twins before turning back to Serica. "Is she someone we know?"

"Yeah… and that's the scary part." She handed the papers to him. "Pumyra, we're _really_ going to have to stall."

The puma sighed. "I was afraid of that…."

"Don't worry; just keep your mouth shut and play along." Serica stepped forward and took the papers from Cheetara without a by-your-leave. She barely glanced at them. "Dare I ask what sort of evidence this is?" she queried the Baron.

"Blood work and copies of the marriage license and birth certificates," he told her self-importantly. "You can't deny their authenticity."

"Oh, yes, I can. You signed a betrothal contract fifteen years before Thundera was destroyed. Just when, pray tell, did you supposedly marry Kinyoubi? Before? Because that would label you as an oath breaker. After? The previous betrothal contract would've had to have been labeled null and void, and a runaway bride doesn't count."

He stared at her in shock. "Wha—impossible! You've no proof of that!"

She pointed her thumb back at Pumyra. "You don't recognize her, Tass? She's only gotten taller since you last saw her; she still looks pretty much the same from when you signed the betrothal contract."

He looked at Pumyra, as if for the first time, and his face whitened considerably. "You told me she was dead!" he snapped at his bookkeeper, who cowered behind him.

"I-I-I saw her on Th-th-th-thund-d-dera as we were t-t-taking off!" Mr. Grubber stuttered. "Sh-sh-she missed her sh-sh-ship! I-I-I don't know h-h-how she's h-h-here!"

"Also," Serica said, tossing the Baron's papers over her shoulder, "we know your blood work is false. The Thundercats did a little bit of their own testing, and the Thunder kittens, I'm afraid, are no more related to you than I am."

"I have their birth certificates!" the Baron snapped.

"I know their mother. She hates doctors, especially hospitals. Knowing her, Venenum probably crawled away to a cave and dropped the twins there without anyone knowing the difference." She ignored the combined spluttering from the Thunder kittens and Cheetara. "Their father, Tigris, of course, wouldn't have known because he'd died months earlier."

"I know Venenum! The creature that dresses as if she were some sort of ninja-wannabe!" Baron Tass was clearly thinking as fast as he could, anything to keep from relinquishing his claim. "She _is_ Kinyoubi; she never told me what had happened to change her so much!" The Baron smirked a little. "And Tigris is no doubt a figment of your imagination!"

Serica raised an eyebrow. "Tygra," she said over her shoulder to her brother, "apparently our mother had three virgin births. The Baron here says Daddy never existed."

The Baron spluttered. "Wh-WHAT?"

"I did the blood work myself three times," Pumyra informed him. "Wily Kit and Wily Kat are the children of Venenum and Tigris, the latter also being the father of Serica, Tygra, and Bengali."

For a moment, the Baron looked completely stumped, but then he slowly smiled. "If indeed I am not a relation of the children as you claim, and all the papers concerning Kinyoubi are false as the notary says, then our betrothal still stands, Lady Pumyra. I am certainly _not_ an oath breaker."

Pumyra looked disgusted for a moment, but Tygra quickly intervened between the two. "If one of the betrotheds has committed a Class A felony, then the contract is considered null and void."

The oily smile grew. "Are you insinuating that the highborn noble standing behind you broke the contract long before I did?"

"I didn't say 'a broken betrothal contract'. I said 'a Class A felony'." He raised an eyebrow.

The Baron looked insulted. "That twaddle with the Well of Doubt hardly qualifies as a Class F felony, let alone Class A. And falsified documents and forgery are only Class C."

"I know that." Tygra held up the papers he'd retrieved from the container that Pampas had held in a death grip. "Working hand in hand with slave traders, however, _does _count as Class A."

Baron Tass turned bright red. "How-how dare you accuse me of such a heinous crime! What have you got to back it up? More easily falsified papers?"

"How about a witness?" The front door opened wide, allowing Lion-O and Bengali—both of them looking exceedingly worse for the wear—to step through. "We came across an interesting phantom," Lion-O continued. "Sure you know what happens to a Thunderian soul if he or she has left unfinished business, or worse, when that Thunderian has a very important score to settle."

The Baron flipped around angrily. "Really, Lion-O, I would've expected more from the Lord of the Thundercats than fairytales! Are you truly childish enough to say you woke Kinyoubi's soul from the dead?"

Lion-O smirked. "I never said the witness was Kinyoubi. And strange that you would think it was from her that I would get a witness. I don't suppose you're hiding anything?"

The baron spluttered. "Hiding anything? _Me?_ I've never hidden anything in my life!"

"Not even contracts with two slave traders named Joe and Shiner?" A ghostly apparition stepped between Lion-O and Bengali. "Or even transmissions from a reptilian mutant who praised you for your brilliant find in the pet slave he called 'Kitten'?" Kinyoubi continued, acting unaware of the fact that she was clearly transparent and glowing with a light blue luminosity. "How about that document you had me sign while I was distracted? The one you used as a basis to forge my signature on the marriage license and birth certificates."

Baron Tass had paled considerably at every word that Kinyoubi had said. It was Mr. Grubber that stepped forward and said, "Gh-ghosts aren't real! And-and-and even if th-th-they were, they d-d-don't count as m-m-material witne-ne-nesses! B-be gone, you f-f-figment of imagi-gi-gination!"

"No, you're right, I don't count as a witness… but my sister does. And she is _very _much alive and well."

"S-s-sister? Imp-p-possible!"

"Not impossible. She was there when I signed the paper, and though I was unable to think straight, the same cannot be said of her. She was there when Joe and Shiner kidnapped me, having stowed away on the ship with me, and heard everything they said about Baron Tass. She was the only thing that kept me sane as that reptilian strove to destroy my mind… and she's agreed to stand against you both for everything you've done to me and only the gods know how many others!" She looked to someone hiding just behind Lion-O. "Is that not right, sister?"

Venenum stepped out from behind Lion-O. As she stood next to Kinyoubi's soul, it was easy to see that the two women were identical except for their hair, eyes, and Venenum's scars. "Baron Tass," the poisoner said crisply and clearly, without the hint of an accent, "I stand against you as a witness to what you're done to my sister." Her gaze transferred to the bookkeeper, and her eyes hardened. "And against _you, _Grubber, for daring to forge my sister's signature and sully her name." She added with a sneer, "Only _I'm_ allowed to do that."

"We also have the information needed to find Joe and Shiner, Baron," Lion-O said coolly. "Do you still wish to deny everything and stand trial, destroying any good reputation you supposedly have? Or will you just give up quietly?"

The Baron looked around at the other Thundercats, acting very much like a mouse that has only just realized it was in a circle of traps. He wilted. "Do I have a choice? With charges of forgery and slave trade, it won't matter whether or not I'll win! I'll be ruined completely! I yield, Lion-O, I yield, I yield!"

Serica glanced over her shoulder briefly and grinned. "I say we take him for his word, Lord Lion-O, and make doubly sure that any tale he goes about spreading will be ignored."

Lion-O blinked in surprise, probably looking at the same thing Serica had seen. A trouble-making smile crossed his lips. "What an idea, Serica." He bowed almost mockingly towards the Baron. "I'm so glad you plan to cooperate, Baron Tass. To show my appreciation, how about I allow one of the Thundercats' best kept secrets to escort you to your prison cell? Don't you think it would be the only decent thing to do, Aequo?"

"But of course, my Lord," the wolf mutant said, stepping forward and snatching both the Baron and his bookkeeper. "I was about to suggest the same."

Wily Kit tugged on Serica's sleeve. "Why are you—" she started.

"How many people do you think will believe Tass if he tells them the Thundercats have a pet wolf mutant?" the spy replied in a quiet whisper. "We're just making sure that his credibility with the general population is nil."

As Aequo led the terrified duo out of the room, Bengali backed up quickly and slid down to the floor. "That's all the bravado I've got left," he gasped, coughing up some blood.

"Bengali?" Serica dashed forward, Tygra not too far behind her. "Bengali, what's wrong?"

"Pumyra needs to see to him," Lion-O said. He, too, seemed to deflate now that there was no need to bluff at a strength that was waning. He seemed ready to drop from sheer exhaustion. "Mumm-Ra wounded him quite badly."

Pumyra hurried over and did a quick check on the tiger. "Damn it, this isn't good. Cheetara, run back to the medical room and get me the breathing mask attached to a sleep agent, then get Aequo and tell him to drop off his package quickly. I'm going to need him to move Bengali a.s.a.p.!" As the cheetah tore off, Pumyra pulled a syringe out of the bag on her hip and gave Bengali a shot. "I'm going to have to put you under for surgery."

Cheetara came back with the items she'd been told to get, but as Pumyra attempted to put the mask over his face, he suddenly seemed to panic. Dodging under the puma's arm, he grabbed Serica's shoulder and yanked her to him. "Find Venenum," he gasped. "Don't leave her alone, _especially _now! She didn't mean to kill Father, and she doesn't know the Thunder kittens are hers!"

Pumyra firmly clamped the mask over his face, halting whatever else he might've tried to say. As he lost consciousness, she gently moved him to the floor, just as the wolf mutant returned at a dead run. "Aequo, be gentle with him. There's no telling how bad his condition could be."

Serica turned to Lion-O, glancing at Tygra only to see that he was equally confused with Bengali's statement. "Lion-O, what was he talking about?"

Lion-O glanced around in confusion. Venenum and Kinyoubi had disappeared without a trace. "Oh, no," he moaned, putting a hand to his head. "She's suicidal, Serica. We've got to find her!" He made to run off after her himself, only to wobble forward a few steps and barely keep from falling over. "What's wrong with me? I feel so tired…."

"I'd probably say some seriously advanced Healing," Tygra replied, grabbing Lion-O quickly. "There's a reason no living Healer will use vast amounts of power all at once. The Healing doesn't stick, and it saps far too much energy off of the recipient."

"But Venenum, I have to—"

"You're not going anywhere. Serica and I will find her and bring her back. Alive."

"Hopefully," Serica added under her breath.

"We're coming, too!" Wily Kat chimed in, his sister nodding emphatically.

"Oh, no, you're not!" Serica snapped. "You're helping Lion-O to his room now, and make sure you get Snarf to look after him."

"But Venenum's _our mother!"_ Wily Kit shrieked.

"_And I'm your older sister!"_ Serica shouted back. "Do as I tell you! _Move it!"_

Clearly displeased, the Thunder kittens got on either side of Lion-O and led him out of the room, sending Serica dirty looks. "And to think they asked me why I thought you were a bitch," Tygra sighed, almost as if to himself. "What did Bengali mean when he said that Venenum didn't mean to kill Father?"

"I know what he means," Serica said thoughtfully, tapping her fingers to her lips. "Venenum's been consuming so much poison over the years that she herself has physically become poisonous; _I_ wouldn't even be able to swap spit with her without getting killed. Now, what I'm trying to figure out how Venenum couldn't know that those trouble makers are her brats. I mean, it's not exactly easy to misplace a couple of babies right after one's birthed them…."

"How about we worry about finding her first?"

"Tygra, Serica," Lion-O called over his shoulder. "Venenum… her footsteps… they glow…."

Serica and Tygra gave each other a look as the lord disappeared into a nearby hallway. "Glowing footsteps?" Tygra said, scratching his head. Serica elbowed him in the arm. "That's one of the dumbest things I've ever heard." She elbowed him again, harder this time. "Ow! What is it?"

She pointed at the floor. "Do you see what I see?"

He looked. And stared. "Well, I'll be damned…."

There were, indeed, glowing footsteps on the floor, in precisely the places Venenum had been only a few minutes before. And they led right outside, into the city.

* * *

Snarf dashed down the hall as fast as he could. None of the other had noticed Kinyoubi slip away, but that didn't matter to him. At that moment, the only thing he could think about was getting back to her as fast as possible. She'd been fading out terribly, and though he was loathe to admit it, he knew she didn't have very much time left at all.

He skidded to a halt when he finally found her. She'd gone into the back of a closet, where she lay, curled up like a fetus in the womb. She opened her eyes as he sat beside her, confusion written all over her face as she stared up at him. "Snarf? What are you doing here?"

"I couldn't find you once before, Kinyoubi," he told her, his ears drooping. "It nearly killed me then."

She stared at him for a long while before understanding came into her eyes. She slowly reached up and scratched him on top of his head. "So that's why you refused to leave my side all those years ago," she said, her voice barely a whisper. Her glow was fading, and he could barely see her outline. "I have to admit, I'd wondered about that."

"Well, I won't leave you this time, either, snarf, snarf."

She smiled at him. At least, he thought she did; he couldn't tell anymore. "Thank you, loyal Snarf. I have to admit that a tiny part of me didn't want to be alone…."

"I'll make sure of that," he assured her. "I'll stay right here for as long as you need me Kinyoubi." As she faded completely from sight, even the slight glow dying completely to indicate her departure, he refused to move for nearly an hour. "I'm not going anywhere, I'll be right here for as long as you need me…."

* * *

Venenum looked down; this was a very high cliff. Her heart was beating fast, half of it from fear. She didn't need to look to know that this time Kinyoubi was gone for good; she could feed the emptiness inside of her at the complete loss of her sister.

_I can't do anything right,_ she thought with despair. _Everyone I deal with, everything I touch, it's all destroyed. I'm evil…._

A voice chuckled inside her mind, precisely where it had been hidden for nearly thirty years. _That's right,_ Mumm-Ra told her in her own voice, so carefully that she didn't even realize it wasn't her own. _A creature such as you doesn't deserve to live. You even killed Tigris. His children must hate you for what you've done, wherever they are, and those two brats you spawned for him probably died a few days after they were birthed due to all that poison you've devoured over the years. Hatchiman has no doubt come to his senses as well—I mean, really? A samurai and a ninja, a man of honesty and a woman of deception? Whatever was he thinking? The Thundercats certainly don't care for your company, and the other spies would merely replace you._

_You are worthless._

She took a step closer to the edge. _No one wants me… no one needs me…._

_That's right,_ Mumm-Ra urged her. _So what's the point in living? Probably the only person that did care was Kinyoubi, and now she's gone. Completely. Forever._

Venenum closed her eyes and leaned forward.

_That's it. Fall, fall! Join your sister in her grave! That's how it should've been thirty years ago! Die, DIE!_

Someone grabbed her by her hair and yanked her back away from the edge.

_WHAT?!_

Venenum screeched, trying to break away as a pain of strong hands grabbed her shoulders and dragged her away from the cliff. "Let go of me!" she shrieked. "Let _go_ of me!"

Someone slapped her across the face, hard. "Knock it off!" Serica's voice commanded. "That's an order!"

Venenum stared in surprise at the tigress, and looked over her own shoulder to see that it was Tygra holding her. "What are you two doing?" she snapped, not even bothering with an accent at this point. "Let me go and leave me be! I shouldn't be allowed to exist!"

"Why, because you miscalculated the effect all that poison would have on your body? It's a horrible way to learn you might've done something stupid, but killing yourself won't bring Father back!"

"Father?" Venenum swapped her gaze between the two siblings in horror. "Father?"

"It was an accident, Venenum, we understand that," Tygra told her, "and I can assure you without a shadow of doubt that even Father wouldn't blame you for what happened. His only regret would've been that you had to live with what you'd done."

The poisoner couldn't believe what she was hearing. "But… you don't… hate me?"

"No, not even Bengali. He's the one that told us we needed to come after you. He's somewhat indisposed at the moment, but hopefully he'll live through it so you can confirm the truth for yourself."

Venenum shook her head, starting to cry. "No, you don't understand! It's not just your father! Kinyoubi killed herself to save me! I would've died thirty years ago if she hadn't managed to get control of my body while the spaceship crashed! And Hatchiman no doubt only felt pity for me, knowing that a repulsive creature like me would never be wanted by anyone! I even sent my own children away from me for fear they might come to harm, but they're probably dead anyway because of the poison in my blood!"

Tygra whirled her around, and this time, _he_ slapped her across the face. "Stop that!" he ordered. "Where's the confident poisoner that had the audacity to claim that the Thundercats she saw were imposters? Or the spy that Cheetara said the Luna-taks and Mutants all together couldn't bring down for almost ten minutes? And do you _really _expect me to believe that Mumm-Ra succeeded in dragging you away without you putting up some sort of fight?"

The thought of the cheesecake and the aftermath of her puking it up all over Mumm-Ra came to mind. "Okay, but that whole fiasco with Mumm-Ra—" she started angrily.

"That's better. Now, listen closely to what I have to say: first of all, while I don't understand exactly what it was that happened thirty years ago, Kinyoubi apparently saw fit to save your life over her own. Do you think she'd thank you for throwing away that kind of sacrifice as if it were worthless? She obviously wanted _you_ to live, otherwise she wouldn't have done it."

"And your twins are hardly dead," Serica added. "The reverse, in fact; they're quite the pair of annoyances. I'm sure you might've seen them running around once or twice. They answer to the names Wily Kit and Wily Kat." She nodded at the shocked look on the poisoner's face. "That's right; they're the kids you had with Father, and I can assure you, they don't seem to mind too much that you're their mother."

"As for Hatchiman—" Tygra handed Venenum the katana he'd been carrying, "—he told me to give this to Kinyoubi's sister. Since I assume you're the only one she had, then that means this is for you. I don't know about him, but I would've give a sharp object to someone I pitied."

Curious despite herself, and her head still reeling from everything she'd been told, she pulled the katana out of its sheath. Written on the blade in graceful Japanese characters was, "Boku no koibito, I am always waiting for you."

_Lies!_ Mumm-Ra shrieked inside her head. _Lies, all lies! You killed your beloved, allowed your sister to die, abandoned your children, and deserted a samurai that would never care for you! You are evil, worthless, nothing but death to all you care for!_

_You are nor evil, poor child,_ an entirely different voice said inside the poisoner's mind, and this one did not feel the need to disguise herself. _Your sister loved you enough to give you her own body,_ the voice continued soothingly, _and Tigris would never hold a grudge for a mistake you didn't know of. You loved all your children enough to want only the best for them, even if that meant they would not be with you. And Hatchiman still waits patiently—and loyally—for the day you return to him._

_Fuck off, Mumm-Rana!_ Mumm-Ra snapped, not bothering to pretend being anything other than what he was. _This creature is mine!_

_In that matter, you are wrong, Mumm-Ra,_ Mumm-Rana replied sternly. _I placed my mark on her before you even knew she existed. Be gone, evil sorcerer!_

Venenum slid the katana back into its sheath, only vaguely aware of something that sounded like someone being thrown out of a door. As the portal slammed shut and Mumm-Ra screamed in frustration from the wrong side of it, she looked back at the cliff curiously and was surprised to realize that the despair she'd felt a moment before was gone. Completely. _That… was entirely too weird,_ she thought, rubbing away the tears that had slipped silently down her cheeks._ I think I'll keep that experience to myself. Bad enough they think I'm crazy already; I can only imagine what they'd think if they found out I hear voices._

"Are you feeling a little less suicidal now?" Serica asked after a long moment of silence.

The poisoner nodded.

"Good," Tygra said, "because I'm sure the Thunder kittens are more than ready to pester you with a million questions."

"And maybe I wiru answer sem," she replied, deliberately picking up her accent again. "Sey wiru just hab to wonder if I decide not to."

* * *

Hatchiman sighed as he leaned back into the chair. The control room in the Lair on Third Earth was about as exciting as watching wet paint dry, but boring also meant safe, so he felt no need to restrain Tyri while she ran about decorating the room with daisies she'd picked that morning.

A few extras still in her hands, the cub plopped down on the floor beside the samurai and started plucking petals off of one of the flowers. She must've discovered the joy of fortune-telling with a daisy, because she'd been doing almost nothing else for the past two days. "Candy, no candy," she piped, pulling off the petals accordingly. "Candy, no candy—" She continued on until she came to the final one. She pouted. "No candy."

"I must be mad!" Hatchiman said finally, slapping his hands against his forehead. "A samurai and a ninja? We wourud kiru each osser before se week was out." He sighed, putting an elbow on the control board and resting his head in his hand. "Still… aru sose years I spent wis her, we managed somehow…. And I stiru miss sose days, eben now." He looked down at the child, who was watching him curiously, and asked her, "What do you sink, rittru one? Am I sane, or not?"

He'd asked her on the assumption that she was too young to understand what he was talking about. So he wasn't exactly pleased when she picked up a daisy and started plucking petals from it, chirping, "Sane, no sane, sane, no sane—"

"I must remember neber to ask you anysing again."

She held up the daisy stem and it's last petal proudly. "No sane!"

He leaned back in the chair. "What is sad is sat you just might be right," he admitted reluctantly. "Sere's no way a ninja—a creature of secrecy and deception—wourud ever rove one such as me."

Tyri picked up another daisy and went through the whole process again, this time saying, "Love, no love, love, no love—"

Something on the control board beeped. Looking up at the screen, Hatchiman was surprised to see a window pop open in the center of it. Typed into the box, in Japanese, was:

_There are some important things I must do. Do not hold your breath waiting for me. I will be very upset it I come back to see that you have suffocated yourself… but I WILL return… atashi no koibito._

Hatchiman stared at the screen for a long while, unaware of the smile that had crept onto his face. Not until Tyri patted his arm did he even realize he was light-hearted for the first time in years.

"Love!" Tyri piped, handing him the daisy stem with its last petal.

* * *

Night on Thundera was silent and still. The only light in the Old Capitol came from the double moons high above the planet's surface. Only one creature was moving, slowly, and sadly, though the city to the ruined graveyard that rested near the far end of it.

Snarf stopped at one of the graves. The gravestone was split down the middle and the words scrubbed away by disaster, but he know exactly whose it was. He reached into the purse he always had with him, the one with his lucky Jaga penny, and pulled out a tiny lock of brown hair with a white ribbon tied around it to hold it together. Kinyoubi had given it to him one year for his birthday, cutting it from her head as he watched and apologizing for being unable to afford anything else.

He'd treasured it even more than the stupid penny.

"Here we are, Kinyoubi," he said miserably. "It's not the kind of funeral you deserve, but it's the best that I can do. I don't know where Claudis died, but Leaena's right here, and I know she'll take you to him." He dug a small hole in the ground near the base of the gravestone, and gently placed the lock of hair into it.

He sat back on his heels for a long time, staring mournfully at that single lock of hair before forcing himself to bury it. "I have always loved you, Kinyoubi, ever since I looked up one morning and realized you'd grown into a young woman. I kept silent all those years when you clearly had eyes for no one but Claudis, and it was all I could do to try and cheer you up when he was forced to marry Leaena. Your smile was what I woke up for in the morning; your heartbreak tore me apart inside. I only wish I could've been a better protector for you. You deserve so much more than a feeble old snarf.

"No other female has ever replaced you in my heart, and none ever will. You are more precious to me than all the treasures in the universe combined. I… will miss you… very, very much…."

He cried silently for several minutes, unable to tear himself away, even though he knew he had to get back to the Lair. He was never certain, but he thought that a pair of ghostly arms embraced him from behind, soothing him with their warmth, and that a gentle voice whispered, "Thank you, loyal Snarf."

* * *

**End of Part Four.**

And once more, Random Notes! I can hear the fires burning already, and the shouts of, "WITCH, WITCH, WITCH!"

Vanishing twin syndrome: No joke, it exists. According to experts (whoever they are), the chances of vanishing twin syndrome (or VTS) are one in twenty pregnancies.

Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup: This is the type of thing that happens when I watch a marathon of something. And this time, it's all thanks to the Power Puff Girls!

Nayda: It took me four tries to get this part of the story right, and I think I've gotten it just right. Feel free to flame me if you disagree.

"Boku wa doshite…?": Approximate Japanese translation, or at least what I wanted him to say, "Why me…?"

"Boku no koibito…": "Koibito" is translated as "sweetheart" or "beloved", and "boku no" is a masculine way of saying "mine". I rather picture Hatchiman translating it as "my beloved". You'll note that later on Venenum says pretty much the same thing, except that instead of "boku no", she uses "atashi no", which is far more feminine.

Physically poisonous: Why are all nursing mothers told not to smoke or to at least time their smoking according to when they breast feed? Because the nicotine from the cigarette gets into the breast milk. Same for a guy that smokes; the woman he's having sex with will literally get addicted to him. I honestly don't know if someone can eat so much poison that he or she becomes poisonous, but it's certainly an interesting idea.

Old Capitol: I figure that if Baron Tass can recognize bits of his own land in Well of Doubt and Snarf would recognize the Valley of Snarfs in _Return to Thundera Part 1,_ then there have to be other places on Thundera that are like that. My assumption is that the original Capitol city of Thundera is one of those places, and that no one would want to enter it considering how many people must've died there. Hence, why it's called the "Old Capitol."

"And this is the dining room…!": If you've seen _Clue_ starring Tim Curry, you'll know where I got this whole scene from. I love that movie…! X3

Mumm-Ra/Venenum: Okay, come on, folks, it's Mumm-Ra! If he could, he would, and we all know it! And sure enough, if Mumm-Rana suspected what he was up to, she'd put a stop to it in any way necessary.

**In Spies and Assassins Part Five:**

The time has come for the Peace Treaty between Thundera and Plun-Darr to be signed, and that spells danger for Lion-O, as he must go to Plun-Darr itself to witness it. If the Thundercats want to keep him alive, they're going to have to trust the spies with his life… and the spies are going to have to call in every favor they can get their hands on.


End file.
